The 2022 figures on animal testing have finally come out... and are not reassuring

(Hardly) less suffering…?

On a global scale, we see in the tables produced by the Ministry of Research that the number of experiments that are moderate and severe in severity have reduced slightly in relation to 2021. But in concrete terms, more than a million animals were still involved in 2022. And this very relative reduction mainly relates to rodents, while it is the opposite for other species: since 2018, between 100 and 200 dogs have suffered in severe experiments. In 2022, it reached a record number of 225.

Incidentally, the number of ‘mild’ projects has blown up, increasing to almost 50%, although it had been stable for years. In comparison with previous years, we have seen that the huge usage of mice in “basic research” is the cause – but public authorities remain silent on this subject. After all, as the Vice President of ethics committees Anses/EnvA/UPEC recently stated, “white mice, forgive me, don’t deserve a lot of discussion”. Do you not agree? No, us neither.

Practices have remained invisible until today

According to the Ministry, the increase is mainly due to a new “guide” from the European Commission, which means that now, if we want to cut off a piece of tail or a finger from rodents in order to verify the success of a genetic modification, we must declare it. And according to a project summary approved this autumn, a “tail biopsy” would generate only “mild stress or pain for a short duration” in baby rats and mice…

These new figures reveal that, every year, hundreds of thousands of animals have endured these practices without them having been declared until now. France is also late on this subject, since the “implementing decision” from the European Commission, who implemented this declaration in 2020, should have been applied from 2021…

Yet more macaques

Since November 2022, using “first generation” (F1) primates in captivity has been banned in the European Union, meaning those whose parents were captured in the wild where they were living with their family in complete freedom. The reason is that capturing them threatens Asian long-tailed macaques with extinction and is a great source of suffering for guenons and monkeys in Mauritius, where we have investigated recently.

France, always quick to respond, brought yet more F1 macaques into laboratories in 2022 (946) than in the previous year (639).

One Voice is keeping vigil to defend animals

According to the ministry, “at an equivalent scope compared to that of previous years”, the number of uses would have decreased to 1,802,025. This figure has come out of thin air without them showing the calculations – and it is very difficult to find any justification for it in the tables, graphs, and succinct explanations that are far from being worthy of an organisation who regulates scientific research on a national level...

As we do each year, One Voice has asked public officials for the detailed figures, which will allow us to inform you in a comprehensive way and to update our accurate, transparent, and specialised analysis, which we invite you to consult.

Translated from the French by Joely Justice