Expansion of the primatology centre in Rousset: a month of actions with One Voice, and a mobilisation that is paying off
Since the summer of 2024, One Voice has been campaigning against the CNRS’s plans to expand the Rousset primatology centre to triple the number of monkeys being bred there for sale to laboratories. The unexpected public attention has led the CNRS to open a month-long consultation process. Presented as “voluntary” and “transparent” but conducted as a communication operation, it ended on 16 November.
Despite the obstacles, the call launched by One Voice and its partner associations was heard: more than 2,200 opinions, mostly unfavourable, were submitted. This is a strong signal on the eve of an official assessment expected mid-December.
June 2024: the CNRS attempts to discreetly launch a call for tenders to expand the primatology site in Rousset. As soon as this information was revealed, One Voice called on the government and the CNRS to obtain the official documents on this project which is contrary to European commitments to reduce the number of lab animals. Faced with their silence, we launched a large-scale campaign in April 2025 with 150 partner associations and organisations alongside the Collectif Vauclusien de Protection Animale (Vaucluse Animal Protection Collective). The media response was immediate. The CNRS, which had hoped to move forward quietly, then launched a preliminary consultation under the supervision of a guarantor from the Commission Nationale du Débat Public (CNDP, National Commission for Public Debate).
During one month this autumn our association mobilised to raise awareness around this project, organising a dozen events in the field with its activists. In total over 1,000 leaflets were distributed in Rousset and the surrounding municipalities.
Proclaimed transparency, organised opacity
Supposedly intended to inform the public, this preliminary consultation promised transparency. Instead, the CNRS provided a promotional brochure with no real alternative scenario and organised a single meeting in Rousset, the municipality most affected. Our actions brought dozens of residents to the meeting. Almost all of them expressed their opposition. Throughout the month of consultation, obstacles were put in place to prevent us from obtaining clear answers: crucial documents were withheld, questions remained unanswered, etc. This lack of transparency is widespread at the CNRS. Though present at all four meetings, the Gircor, an animal experimentation lobby group, did not even deem it necessary to inform the public. Its president, who is also a veterinarian at the CNRS, spoke without mentioning his dual role.
The battle continues
Without our mobilisation in April 2025, this consultation would not even have taken place. The CNRS attempted to use it to improve its image, to no avail. Despite the lobby’s attempts to influence the outcome, the opposition is overwhelming at first glance: of the 2,238 opinions submitted, more than 93% are unfavourable. The guarantor will give his official assessment in a few weeks’ time. Further consultations will follow in 2026. We will not give in: One Voice will continue its fight against this unjustifiable project to the very end.
You can still join us in taking action: sign the petition and pass it on
Join our actions in the field: militants@one-voice.fr