About the Lush Prize

Begun in 2012, the Lush Prize is a major initiative aiming to bring forward the day when safety testing takes place without the use of animals.

It is the largest prize fund in the non-animal testing sector, awarding £250,000 every prize year. Between 2012 and 2024, Lush Prize has given £2.94 million to 140 winners in 36 countries, supporting scientists and activists in countries as diverse as China, Kenya, Iran, Ukraine and India, as well as New Zealand, Brazil, USA and across Europe.

This large prize fund is aimed to support the most progressive work in the field and ensure it continues and has most impact.

As well as the Prizes, the Lush Prize Conference and other events explore key issues with its winners and other experts. Recent online events have attracted more than 300 participants and high profile speakers.

 

History of the Prize

Launched in 2012, the Lush Prize is a collaboration between Lush Cosmetics and Ethical Consumer – read more about the history of the Prize.

Below, the people behind the Prize explain how and why the Prize came into existence.

 

Ending Animal Testing

Despite some successful and popular campaigns, animal research and testing still takes place.

Animal research and testing is both inhumane and unscientific and the Prize aims to speed the introduction of non-animal testing, particularly in toxicity testing for consumer products and ingredients.

Read more about the issues and how the Prize addresses them.

 

Supporting Non-Animal Research

Animal research and testing is now widely acknowledged to be highly questionable, both scientifically and ethically, with regard to prediction of human safety and disease.

Adverse Outcome Pathways and 21st Century Toxicology offer new and better approaches to safety testing.

Read more about why we should promote these approaches for ending animal testing.

 

First 10 years of the Lush Prize

When Lush Prize was being designed in 2012, we asked specialists how realistic it was to call for a world where all animal testing had stopped, and how long it might take to get there? Most said we needed to be in it for the long haul, and that it would take at least 20 years to achieve that goal.

We have identified the following 10 key developments or changes between 2012 and 2022, on the road to ending animal testing:

Science (and Young Researchers and Training) Prize
1. A rising awareness of the failure of the animal model
2. A rise of Organs on Chips and Computational Toxicology
3. AOPs (Adverse Outcome Pathways) are becoming embedded as a core knowledge framework

Politics (Lobbying, Public Awareness and Political Achievement Prizes)
4. Bans on animal tested cosmetics have been rolling out globally
5. A rise of ambition for full replacement everywhere (roadmaps)
6. A rise of 3Rs centres and replacement ideas

Reasons not to celebrate too soon
7. Painfully slow decreases in animal use
8. Institutional inertia remains a real problem

Reasons to be cheerful
9. More discussion of human relevant science and less of ‘alternatives’
10. Young scientists are increasingly being trained in and are enthusiastic about these ideas

For more detail the evaluation paper (PDF download) – Lush Prize – 2012 to 2022: What’s been achieved on the road to ending animal testing in the last ten years?