Artifact #8: THE ANIMAL WELFARE ACT

THE ANIMAL WELFARE ACT (AWA)
HSUS. http://www.hsus.org/animals_in_research/general_information_on_animal_research/laws_protecting_animals_in_research/the_animal_welfare_act.html

• Tells minimum standards of care and treatment required for animals in research
• Enacted in 1966, only to dealers. Amended in 1970 to research: birds, rats, and mice were not included (85% used in labs)
• "The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the agency responsible for establishing these minimum standards of care and enforcing them through inspections."
• By 2004 the act was changed to all animals
• "The Animal Welfare Act also requires that any institution conducting research on USDA-regulated species have an Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC), which oversees and provides final approval of experiments. This committee must ensure that any pain and distress caused by experiments be minimized, and that investigators consider any alternatives that are available to them (including non-animal alternatives). "
• 3 Parts: Facilities and Operating Standards, Animal Health and Husbandry Standards, and Transportation Standards

Artifact #7: HOW TO FIND PRODUCTS NOT TESTED ON ANIMALS

How to Find Products Not Tested on Animals
West, Larry. 2006. http://environment.about.com/od/greenlivingdesign/a/animal_testing.htm?terms=Animal+Testing

Testing is Mandated, Some Volunteer

• "Governments often mandate that certain products, such as drugs, automotive fluids, garden chemicals and food additives, be tested on animals."
• "... cosmetics, personal care and household cleaning products, companies voluntarily test on animals to better understand the pros and cons of using certain ingredients, to see what effects a given product or ingredient will have on living systems--and to demonstrate due diligence should their products harm someone and a lawsuit be filed."

Protests and Boycotts Have Stopped Some Animal Testing

• "...advocacy groups like HSUS and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) campaign vigorously to eliminate or reduce the use of animals in product testing, even recommending boycotts of companies that continue to voluntarily engage in what they argue is both cruel and unnecessary. "
• "...as more than 500 cosmetic, personal care and household cleaning product manufacturers have vowed to stop testing their products on animals."

Europe Passes Partial Ban on Animal Testing for Cosmetics

• "In 2003 the European Parliament approved a Europe-wide ban on the use of animals in cosmetics testing. Set to go into effect in 2009, the prohibition also mandates that no beauty or hygiene products tested on animals elsewhere be sold inside the European Union. Some exemptions do exist, however, such as products tested for toxicity or for their potential effects on human fertility. Some animal advocacy groups see these as unacceptable loopholes likely to undermine the ban or push back its implementation."

Questions

1. Why did Europe ban animal testing, and would the United States do the same?
2. Do the boycotts succeed, and to what extent will the groups go to get their point across?