Animal Derived Materials

Animal Derived Materials Policy
Animal Testing
Fur
Leather and Wool

What is ASOS’ policy regarding Animal Derived Materials? 

The ASOS Animal Derived Materials Policy applies to all products sold through any of ASOS's websites – whether they’re an ASOS brand like ASOS Design, or from one of our brand partners.

Our policy says that products must not be made from any of the following animal derived materials: 

• any part of vulnerable, endangered, exotic, or wild-caught species; 
• fur, including Mongolian lambs' fur, Karakul lambskin pelts, or rabbit hair (including angora); 
• bone, horn, coral, pearl, shell (including mother of pearl) and teeth; 
• silk.

We allow some animal derived materials like alpaca, down, mohair, and cashmere to be used in some of our ASOS products, and some products from our brand partners. However, we only allow these materials to be used when they meet certain industry certifications that ensure a high standard of animal welfare.

Products (and all relevant components) on ASOS must not be tested on animals.   

Find out more information about our Animal Derived Materials Policy here. 

Is makeup sold at ASOS tested on animals?

We don’t think it’s acceptable for animals to suffer in the name of fashion or cosmetics. 

Animal testing of cosmetic ingredients and finished products is banned in the EU. The ban was introduced in stages starting in 2009 for products and for certain tests on raw materials. There was a complete ban on all testing in 2013. Now, it's illegal to test any cosmetic product or ingredient for use in cosmetics on animals in the EU. As an online company, it's important to us that all our customers across the world can enjoy our diverse product range. Unfortunately, some countries still require animal testing to be carried out for cosmetics. This means some beauty brands sold through ASOS who also sell their products through other channels may still be testing on animals if required by local market regulations.   

Do ASOS sell items made with fur? 

We don't promote or sell fur from animals such as angora and rabbit. Animal products and synthetic materials made to look like animal products must be clearly labelled as faux on the product description and care label to avoid confusion.   

All ASOS suppliers and brand partners using permitted animal-derived materials are required to provide information on the name of the species of animal used in their products (both common and scientific name) and the country of origin from where the animal was reared.   

It’s been highlighted in the media that faux fur is being substituted with real fur by manufacturers as it can be cheaper than synthetic materials.

This is something we’re closely monitoring, and we conduct spot checks on products to check that faux fur is not being substituted with real fur.

Why have ASOS not banned leather or wool?

ASOS believe wool and leather can be sourced responsibly as a by-product of the meat industry. We support the adoption of the Responsible Wool Standard, Responsible Alpaca Standard, and Responsible Mohair Standard.

We require our suppliers to implement industry recognised best-practice standards to ensure animal welfare is safeguarded at all times.