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The Government of Brussels-Capital has banned animal testing on Dogs, Cats and Primates from January 2020. This landmark decision will reduce the number of animals in experiments by almost a fifth.
The ban will forbid animal experiments in education and safety tests as well as commercial animal testing, except for in cases where ‘no alternatives are available and the tests are deemed absolutely necessary.’
They hope to reduce the total amount of laboratory animals in the region by 20% by 2025. If this is achieved, around 20,000 laboratory animals will be spared.
A spokesperson for GAIA, a Belgian animal protection organisation that campaigned hard and long for this result, said: “It’s a good start and we’ve achieved one of our main goals as well, however a lot of work remains to be done.”
Michelle Thew, Chief Executive of Cruelty Free International, said: “This is brilliant news from Belgium. It goes to show that it is possible for governments to move away from the use of animals in experiments. I would call upon the UK Government to look at what has happened in Brussels-Capital and follow suit.”
Other regions of Belgium are setting good examples, too. Recently, after pressure from PETA, the Flemish government announced a ban on fur farming and the force-feeding of birds for foie gras in Flanders. This ban will be enforced by 1st December 2023 at the latest.
