Thousands of macaques in distress: revelations about their transport conditions to laboratories
One Voice reveals the information and photos gathered by our friends at Animal Rights on the conditions under which monkeys are flown in to supply European and American laboratories. Reports and images reveal the brutal and deadly reality of this international trade, centered around Brussels airport, one of the world’s hubs for sending laboratory animals to Europe and the United States. In 2024 alone, several thousand macaques passed through the airport.
Endless flight hours in unbearable conditions
As we reported in 2023, long-tailed macaques are captured from the wild in Mauritius for use in laboratories around the world. But before they get there, they endure a harrowing journey. They are locked up in small wooden crates, shipped by the dozens, even hundreds, by airlines such as BinAir, SkyTaxi, and RAF-AVIA. These boxes, with simple openings for ventilation, isolate each primate in a space so cramped that they can’t even stand upright normally. The photos speak for themselves: huddled beings, terrified and clearly exhausted by these extreme conditions.
Serial injuries, stress and death
Inspection reports¹ reveal some chilling facts: during a shipment to the UK in July 2023, it was noted that the macaques traveled in a hold with a temperature of 10°C, far too cold for them. The inspector admitted that this temperature did not comply with standards, yet the shipment was authorized.
And that’s not all… On another trip, one of the macaques suffered from anal prolapse, a serious, hemorrhagic injury. However, the inspector approved the transfer, describing the injury as “minor” and considered that further treatment would suffice. The photos show a different reality: the monkey and the walls of their cage are covered in blood. Here’s an absurdity: European regulations prohibit the transport of “farmed” animals with anal prolapse, but do not apply to those intended for laboratories, which can therefore be transported with mortal wounds. Animal Rights has filed a complaint for allowing these monkeys to board these flights.
And it doesn’t stop there. Last July, on a flight to New York JFK, a macaque was found dead in its crate on arrival. In fact, in some reports, our closest cousins, when found dead on arrival, are simply crossed off the list on the delivery note and considered as “units” deducted from the total, which will certainly not be charged…
France is also concerned by this trade, of which macaques are the first victims…
Call to action: let’s put an end to this sordid trade
We call on Brussels airport to put an immediate stop to the monkey trade. These practices must stop!
Join us in demanding an end to the use of macaques in laboratories by signing our petition.
¹The information was obtained in the form of inspection reports received from the Flemish Animal Welfare Department for the period January 2023 to August 2024. These reports concern monkeys sent from Brussels airports to the UK, Germany, France, Spain and the USA.