Companies that have been infamous for conducting animal tests on a contract basis are now leading the way in the non-animal toxicity testing market, thanks in part to PETA and its supporters. According to a new study published by Transparency Market Research (TMR), “competition in the global in vitro toxicity testing market is … centered on faster and accurate outcomes.” The study identifies several factors in the shift away from tests on animals, including “rising ethical concerns over the use of animals for toxicity testing,” as well as the fact that “inhumane animal test[s]” are slow and expensive.

As the public grows more and more outraged over the cruelty and bad science of cruel animal experiments, companies are being forced to reevaluate and push for non-animal testing methods instead. Remarkable breakthroughs in in vitro testing allow researchers to predict more accurately how products, chemicals, and treatments will affect humans. This is the future, and it is not only kinder but also smarter:

And guess what: The TMR study revealed that two of the companies leading the way in the development of in vitro methods are Covance and Charles Rivers Laboratories (CRL). This marks a new direction for these animal abusers, which are also the largest importers of nonhuman primates into the U.S., bringing in thousands of monkeys who have been taken from their homes in the wild or bred on decrepit monkey factory farms. Covance is also one of the world’s largest breeders of dogs for use in experiments.

CRL was once fined for baking monkeys alive after a heating system malfunctioned, and Covance was once exposed in a PETA undercover investigation. At the time, PETA’s investigator documented injured and sick monkeys who were deprived of veterinary care and primates who were slammed into their cages and sprayed with pressurized hoses.

More than 100 million animals suffer and die in the U.S. every year in cruel chemical, drug, food, and cosmetics tests as well as in medical training exercises and curiosity-driven medical experiments at universities. So it’s remarkable when the abusers see the handwriting on the wall and invest significant resources in in vitro test methods.

What You Can Do

Refuse to support companies that test on animals, and make sure your home and personal care products are all cruelty-free.