Lush

Is Lush an ethical company?

Lush, a well-known skincare, beauty and haircare brand owned by Lush Cosmetics Ltd, is one of The Good Shopping Guide’s well-rated ethical brands. The brand receives a great Good Shopping Guide score in our Ethical Skincare Ratings Table and therefore passes our ethical benchmark as a good ethical brand.

We encourage other companies in the Skincare sector to follow Lush’s example and adopt more ethical policies and practices.

Lush performs well across most categories of our research, receiving good scores for the Environment, Animals, and People.

Is Lush vegan?

Yes, Lush products are certified vegan by The Vegan Society.

Are Lush products Cruelty-Free?

One image commonly associated with Lush is two rabbits and the motto of ‘Fighting Animal Testing’. From the website, Lush cites that “[w]e have been fighting against animal testing since before we opened our first shop, and the fight continues today. Animal testing is poor science and its results are irrelevant for humans.” Lush’s website statement is thorough and has obtained a high Good Shopping Guide score in our Animal Welfare research category.

Is Lush a sustainable brand?

Lush’s Environmental Policy details the company’s many environmental initiatives (packaging, raw materials, water, etc). Additionally, there are specific sections that cover concerns in greater detail, such as carbon emissions, palm oil, packaging & trash, etc. The “Lusher Than We Found It” report also includes numerous statistics on the business’s environmental development.

Find Lush’s Environmental Policies here, carbon impact here, and re-wilding initiatives here.

Public Criticisms: Lush controversies

Lush Cosmetics posted a number of anti-union comments on its internal website for North American staff members in November 2020. Some employees began a petition requesting Lush to stop using anti-union strategies and openly declare that it will bargain in good faith with any union that Lush employees choose. Additionally, after the British division of the cosmetics company gave £3,000 to A Woman’s Place UK, a non-profit that has been accused of transphobia, activists have called for a boycott of Lush UK.

To achieve our Ethical Accreditation Award, we recommend that Lush gain Organic-certification. Lush did once produce some Organic products, but these are no longer verified.

To find out more about Lush, see the Lush website.