Air Cruelty: Inside the Labs of Two of the Largest U.S. Primate Importers

Published on 27 Sep 2012

Shocking undercover and whistleblower footage from inside the laboratories of Covance and Shin Nippon Biomedical Laboratories (SNBL), two of the largest importers of primates into the United States for use in cruel experiments.

Every year, tens of thousands of nonhuman primates are transported from countries such as China, Mauritius, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Indonesia to the U.S. to be imprisoned in laboratories and tormented in experiments. Some are bred in captivity on cramped, squalid monkey factory farms, while others are stolen from their families in the wild.

The traumatized monkeys are crammed into small wooden crates and transported in the backs of trucks and the dark and terrifying cargo holds of planes, often on passenger flights just below unsuspecting customers. 

According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, nearly 23,000 nonhuman primates were brought into the U.S. in 2010—nearly all of them destined for laboratories. Nearly 3,000 monkeys were imported by animal testing conglomerate Shin Nippon Biomedical Laboratories (SNBL), where recent photos and video footage leaked by a whistleblower show sick, distraught monkeys suffering horribly from tests in which they were injected with experimental chemicals.

Almost every major airline in the world—including Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, United Airlines, US Airways, Air China, China Southern Airlines,China Eastern Airlines, TAM Airlines, El Al Airlines, and dozens of others—refuses to take any part in this violent industry and prohibits the transportation of primates to laboratories.

However, an increasingly small group of airlines—including Air France, Philippine Airlines, and Vietnam Airlines—continues to profit from animals’ misery by transporting monkeys destined for U.S. laboratories.

Please be a voice for the monkeys who are suffering in the primate trade. Take a minute of your time now to urge airlines that still transport monkeys to U.S. laboratories to join their peers and adopt a formal policy against the transportation of nonhuman primates for use in experiments.

Petition Link:–https://secure.peta.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=3888