Rousset Primatology Station: entire lines of primates suffering in laboratories

Rousset Primatology Station: entire lines of primates suffering in laboratories
04.11.2025
Rousset, Bouches-du-Rhône Rousset Primatology Station: entire lines of primates suffering in laboratories
Expérimentation animale

After taking legal action to obtain transparency around the fate of primates being used in France, One Voice finally received several — incomplete — documents from the CNRS and the University of Aix-Marseille.

Although they are only partial, these documents already paint a damning picture. They make it possible to reconstruct the journey of several marmosets born, transferred or held at the CNRS breeding facility in Rousset, and to glimpse the real conditions of the ‘life’ of primates being used for experiments in France.

Entire families of primates victims of experiments over several generations

At the CNRS site in Rousset, suffering is not the lot of a single individual: it is passed on from generation to generation. Entire lines of primates are being exploited there.

• For example, Fenouil, a marmoset who spent several years in Rousset, died in 2022 after undergoing numerous experiments. But he was also used for breeding. Eight babies were born to him, including Nuphar, Narcisse and Navet, who were born in 2017.
• Nuphar died the same year as his father. A few days before their deaths, both had undergone injections into the brain as part of the same experimental project. His brothers, Narcisse and Navet, met a similar end: they were killed after being subjected to the same experimental protocol.
• The case of Kaki, another marmoset, illustrates this infernal mechanism. He died in 2023 from an unknown cause, leaving behind descendants who also died in unclear circumstances: Orange, born in 2018, and Pépin, born in 2019 in Rousset, both died without any cause being given.
• Salakis, born in 2021 in Rousset, was exploited for breeding. She gave birth to five babies—their fate remains unknown.
• Her brother Sauvage, born the same year, suffered serious injuries to the throat and arms. Last May, one of his claws was torn off following ‘a mistake by the handler’, who allegedly pulled on him while he was clinging to the cage.

In the wild, marmosets are the little chatterboxes of the jungle

These South American primates live in groups and are very talkative. They even give each other names, using specific vocalisations. Cooperation is a ubiquitous practice in marmoset groups, particularly when it comes to raising the young, regardless of gender.

In laboratories, marmosets experience constant distress

And yet, the fate of many of these small mammals will be captivity, solitude and suffering. France remains the leading European country with respect to the use of animals, including primates, in its laboratories, in contradiction with European objectives to reduce their numbers. This is also a far cry from the ambitions of countries such as the United States, where the National Institute of Health (NIH) intends to reverse its practices within five years, making non-animal methods the norm, with those using living beings becoming the minority alternative.

With this expansion of the CNRS site in Rousset, our country and the research community are perpetuating cruel and obsolete practices, financed by millions of euros of public money. Join us in demanding that this type of project be abandoned!

To learn more about the suffering of these primates:

• Rousset Primatology Station: the same fate for all the different primates exploited
• Take part in the consultation, and express your opposition to the project
• Sign the petition

Rousset primatology station: the same fate for all the primates exploited

Rousset primatology station: the same fate for all the primates exploited
04.11.2025
Rousset, Bouches-du-Rhône Rousset primatology station: the same fate for all the primates exploited
Animal testing

Whether they come from the same bloodlines or not, primates in laboratories share the same daily reality: suffering. The information, albeit partial, contained in the documents received from the CNRS and the University of Aix-Marseille concerning the protocols using these animals paints a chilling picture of the real “living” conditions of rhesus macaques. Many were born or passed through the Rousset site, which is looking to expand its operation.

Iroquoise, born in 2013 in Rousset, had numerous injuries caused by fights between individuals made aggressive by captivity and the intense stress of invasive tests. She gave birth to Indira in 2017. Both were used in the same project. Indira, like her mother, had visible signs of trauma on her face: wounds, scratches, injuries, and bites.

Behind these names are lives. Sentient beings, capable of fear, attachment, and pain. Because rhesus macaques are surprising creatures, among the few mammals that blush with pleasure, like many birds that use color to attract mates.

In a breeding facility like Rousset, their stories fade into obscurity behind administrative reports, but the torture inflicted upon them is repeated—generation after generation.

The common thread among all these primates: daily suffering

Whether they were born in Rousset, transferred from other centers, or exploited in different projects, they all share the same fate: confinement, deprivation, pain. Behind the protocols and scientific terms, their distress is the only constant.

Akira, who was born in 2009 in Rousset and died in 2018, underwent the insertion of cranial pins and chambers that became infected. Wounds are also reported, caused by fights with other primates due to their conditions of captivity. Researchers’ notes indicate:

“Still showing signs of cortical collapse following cleaning of the chamber. Animal not well in cage: head back, drooling, vomiting, weak”.

In 2018, it was noted:

“Animal not well in cage at 6 p.m. Bristled hair and vomiting observed during the day. […] then decision to operate on him the next day as an emergency to remove the chamber”.

The next day, Akira died on the operating table.

Eliott, born in 2009 in Rousset and deceased in 2019, was subjected to a research project on the effects of cocaine, forcing him to take repeated doses of the drug. The notes mention that he remained “in a dazed state (staring into space and listless posture) for several days”. He was attacked by other monkeys, requiring staples to be inserted. The records report numerous injuries due to fights. Electrical stimulators were implanted in his chest.

These excerpts reflect the physical and psychological violence inflicted on these animals, victims of prolonged and invasive protocols.

This is how, in 2025, primates are still being used and treated in our country’s laboratories.

Far from moving towards a reduction in animal experimentation, France is instead embarking on the path of industrializing primate breeding, in total contradiction with European objectives to transition to alternative methods.

The expansion of the CNRS site in Rousset, planned to turn it into a national breeding facility, is proof of this. Behind the technocratic term “National Center for Primatology” lies a brutal reality: the expansion of a site intended to produce and supply ever more monkeys for exploitation. Together, let’s make the voices of these animals heard: join us in calling for the cancellation of this project!

To learn more about the suffering endured by these primates:

• Rousset Primate Research Center: entire lines of primates suffering in laboratories
• Take part in the consultation process and express your opposition to the project
• Sign the petition

In the space of three months, the French government has authorised experimentation on more than 1.8 million animals in French laboratories

In the space of three months, the French government has authorised experimentation on more than 1.8 million animals in French laboratories
28.10.2025
France
In the space of three months, the French government has authorised experimentation on more than 1.8 million animals in French laboratories
Animal testing

In France, authorisations for protocols involving animals continue, month after month, without any questioning. Fundamental and applied research, regulatory and toxicological testing: all continue to cause the suffering and death of hundreds of thousands of sentient beings. Between 22 July and 22 October 2025, 1,867,167 animals were used in experimental projects authorised by the Ministry of Research. Here are a few examples presented by One Voice!

Behind these figures, a wide variety of projects continue to be carried out throughout the country, illustrating the extent to which France is not making any real transition towards animal-free science, despite the knowledge and tools that would make it possible to reduce the use of animals.

Primates: lives destroyed in the name of science

In France, 3,378 primates — mainly macaques and marmosets — continue to be used in experiments of unacceptable cruelty. These social, intelligent animals are torn from their fellow creatures and condemned to months of suffering in laboratory cages. Here is a non-exhaustive list of the abuses they suffer:

• As part of toxicology studies, 2,500 macaques will receive test substances daily, either orally or by injection. They will undergo blood and tissue sampling, and sometimes surgical implants. Some will be isolated for up to three months, restrained in a chair during procedures. The expected effects include pain, stress, weight loss and physiological changes. The vast majority of them will be killed, and a few will be reused in other experiments.
• In another protocol, 32 macaques will undergo injections directly into the eyes, repeated examinations under anaesthesia, and painful specimen samplings. Fasting and stressed by restraint, they will experience acute pain before also being killed for analysis of their eyes. Again, 28 of them will not survive. The remaining four will be used in another project.
• In order to study yellow fever virus, 66 macaques will be deliberately infected by mosquitoes carrying the virus. They will endure fever, vomiting, loss of appetite and extreme fatigue before dying from the infection or being killed for “study”.
• Finally, 320 marmosets and 225 macaques will undergo surgical implants with devices to administer test molecules and monitor their physiological parameters. The consequences: pain, inflammation, isolation and intense stress. 

While these experiments are on the increase, the State plans to expand the Rousset Primatology Station in the Bouches-du-Rhône region to turn it into a “National Primatology Centre“. This public project, estimated to cost €30 million and financed by our taxes, will prolong the captivity and suffering of thousands of animals.

We strongly condemn this project. Rather than investing in suffering, France ought to invest in the science of the future: animal-free, ethical and truly innovative.

Dogs and cats: our companions are being exploited in laboratories in France

In France, thousands of dogs and cats continue, year after year, to be subjected to long, painful and often fatal experiments. Behind each protocol lies an unbearable reality: affectionate animals are being turned into research tools. Here are a few examples:

• To test medical devices, 240 dogs will undergo one or more surgeries lasting up to three hours. Implantations, reopenings, repeated blood samples: despite anaesthesia, post-operative pain, infections and locomotor discomfort are common. All will be euthanized at the end of the studies.
• In another project, 90 dogs will receive experimental molecules by injection, sometimes directly into the brain or joints. These procedures cause stress and pain, and nerve damage may occur. Again, the majority will not survive.
• 260 cats will be used in infection studies involving the administration of viruses or bacteria. Injected, swabbed daily, and subjected to repeated sample-taking, they will develop fever, cough, mouth ulcers, conjunctivitis, diarrhoea, or vomiting. 220 will be killed, and the rest will be used in another project.
• 80 dogs will be vaccinated and then exposed to pathogens administered oro-nasally. Frequent blood samples, daily rectal swabs, repeated restraint and stress are part of the protocol. Unvaccinated animals, used as controls, will develop diarrhoea, vomiting and fever before being euthanized.
• Finally, 50 dogs will undergo major surgery to implant vascular devices. Despite anaesthesia, post-operative pain, fatigue and loss of appetite are inevitable. All will be killed at the end of the experiments.

These are the atrocities that continue to occur every day in French laboratories.

Rodents: still as many are subjected to painful and deadly projects

With more than 1.4 million individuals exploited, rodents remain the most commonly used animals in French laboratories. Mice, rats, rabbits and hamsters account for the majority of protocols, often among the most invasive.

Here are a few examples:

• In a project on amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, 6,170 mice will be subjected to repeated injections, some directly into the central nervous system, to study the progression of the disease. They will develop progressive paralysis before being euthanized.
• To study optic nerve damage, 3,075 mice will receive up to three injections in the eye, followed by a section of the nerve, causing inflammation, pain and loss of vision.
• In a neurobiology project, 180 mice will undergo surgery, lens implants and behavioural tests. Deprived of food and isolated, they will receive electric shocks before being killed.
• To study bone marrow transplants, 8,564 mice will be irradiated, grafted and regularly sampled, causing stress, weight loss and repeated pain over several weeks, even though these procedures are classified as “moderate”.
• 7,624 mice will be victims of a project on Alzheimer’s disease, enduring force-feeding, anaesthesia and terminal surgery. Pregnant females will undergo premature births and develop motor and cognitive disorders before being killed.
• 45,000 mice will undergo blood sampling, anaesthesia, surgery and repeated injections, including subcutaneous implants and administrations. They will suffer pain, bruising, hypothermia, stress, weight loss and motor disorders, before most of them are killed.
• 4,692 mice will receive neurotoxins by injection or orally in a botulism protocol, leading to progressive paralysis, hypothermia and isolation, eventually resulting in certain death.
• 9,934 mice will be manipulated over several weeks to test treatments against tumour and metastatic cells after receiving tumour cell injections. They will suffer stress, pain, irradiation and restricted mobility, with some developing conditions leading to loss of appetite and weight. All of the mice will be killed.
• Finally, 7,680 mice will be subjected to severe peritonitis, artificially induced by surgery or injection of intestinal contents. They will experience a drop in body temperature, weight loss and depression before being sacrificed for observation.

Ethical and modern science is possible

The transition to animal-free science is no longer an utopian dream: it is overwhelmingly supported by the French population (Ipsos/One Voice survey, April 2023), by nearly 150 European scientists from 19 Member States, by the European Parliament in 2010 and 2023, and by French parliamentarians.

We therefore demand that laboratories fully comply with the law, giving priority to alternative methods whenever available.

We encourage professionals to train in animal-free research techniques and urge our political representatives to back significantly increased funding for these approaches.

Because 21st-century science can no longer rely on practices from a bygone era.

Together, let us call on the Minister for Higher Education and Research to commit to ethical and modern research.

Download our template letter and join us in the fight for science that is finally free from animal testing.

Animal experimentation: the CNRS and Aix-Marseille University persist in their lack of transparency

Animal experimentation: the CNRS and Aix-Marseille University persist in their lack of transparency
22.10.2025
Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône
Animal experimentation: the CNRS and Aix-Marseille University persist in their lack of transparency
Animal testing

For years, One Voice has been fighting to lift the veil on the fate of primates used for research purposes in France. But behind the walls of the laboratories, silence and opacity remain the rule. Faced with this refusal to be transparent, we have taken legal action.

On June 12, the Marseille Administrative Court ruled in our favor, ordering the CNRS and Aix-Marseille University (AMU) to provide us with documents relating to the primates held in their facilities. Some of these primates come from the Rousset breeding facility.

However, despite this court ruling, the CNRS and AMU continue to withhold certain documents, in particular inspection reports (carried out by State agencies to monitor the conditions in which animals are kept and experimented on), and to systematically conceal other essential information, such as the causes of death of the monkeys.

This concealment prevents the complete traceability of the animals used and directly contravenes the transparency obligations to which these institutions are subject.

Our fight continues and we will not give up! We have once again taken the matter to the administrative court to ensure that this concealment is lifted and that the court ruling is fully enforced.

The hearing is scheduled for November 3.