All our products are assessed for human safety by qualified experts. We want to eliminate the need for animal testing where scientific methods and technological advances allow. Until this is possible, we keep the use of animals to a minimum by adopting the following approach:

• We carry out the vast majority of our safety testing using non-animal procedures.
• We do not test cosmetics, household products or their ingredients using animals, unless specifically required by law and/or regulatory agencies.
• We may use animal tests to study the safety of ingredients or products not intended for cosmetic or household use, e.g. medical devices and pharmaceutical products, when required by law and/or regulatory agencies or when non-animal alternatives are unavailable. These tests are conducted in strict compliance with applicable ethical and legal standards.

In addition, K-C has for many years encouraged the development of non-animal test methods by funding research into alternatives and by supporting scientific exchange. For example:

• We are a founding member of, and continue to support the Institute for In Vitro Sciences (IIVS), a non-profit foundation that promotes the adoption and regulatory acceptance of alternatives to animal testing.
• We support the Johns Hopkins University Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT).
• We are a contributing member of the Fund for the Replacement of Animals in Medical Experiments (FRAME).
• We are a member of the European Partnership for Animal Alternatives, a common forum between industry and the European Commission to advance the replacement of animal testing.
• We are a voting member of the AAMI Animal Welfare Biological Effects Working Group.
• We have sponsored a number of international meetings on alternatives to testing. Most recently, K-C was a platinum sponsor to the 6th World Congress on Alternatives and Animal Use in Life Sciences, held in Tokyo in September 2007.