Sunday Times 2
Leona Lewis: ‘I’d choose a global ban on animal testing over my singing career’
She’s famous for being incredibly nice to everyone she meets and now singer Leona Lewis has gone one step further by revealing that she would give up her career to end animal testing.
British singer Leona Lewis poses on the red carpet before the MTV Europe Awards ceremony in Berlin (REUTERS)
Although the EU has outlawed testing beauty products on animals, the rest of the world is yet to follow suit – much to animal lover Lewis’ dismay.
Asked to choose between a global ban on vivisection and her singing career by an interviewer, Lewis said that she would plump for the former, adding: ‘I could still do my music in any capacity if I wanted to, but I think it’s just so important for humans to show compassion.
‘They say you can judge a society on how it treats its animals, and I think that’s very true – it all filters down.’
She added: ‘The EU ban will put pressure on the rest of the world: they won’t be able to sell their animal-tested products in Europe any longer, so it makes financial sense that they replace their animal tests with alternative methods if they want to trade in this lucrative market.’
This isn’t the first time Lewis has made clear her feelings on the issue of animal cruelty. In 2008, the singer reportedly turned down a seven-figure offer to appear at a Harrods sale launch from former boss Mohammed Al Fayed on the grounds that the retailer stocks fur.
She also supports several animal rights charities and has attempted to raise the profile of animal rights by collaborating with Topshop on an ethical accessories line and The Body Shop – which has long campaigned against vivisection – on a beauty range.
But it hasn’t all been smooth sailing for Lewis thanks to confusing labels and baffling chemical names, which meant that she had to give up some products after discovering they contain cochineal (made from beetle blood) and fish scales.
‘I’ve only just learnt that a lot of the red pigment in cosmetics is actually from beetles, and I think some of the shimmers in bronzers can be made from fish scales.
‘So I like Body Shop products; I don’t have to worry about such ingredients in its red lipsticks and shimmer palettes. I couldn’t even kill a spider or a fly or anything. I’m very Buddhist in that sense.’
© Daily Mail, London
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