Pharmaceutical Giants AstraZeneca and Novo Nordisk A/S Ban Forced Swim Test on Animals

Posted by on August 21, 2019 | Permalink

Animals win again – not once but twice! After discussions with PETA US, pharmaceutical giants AstraZeneca and Novo Nordisk A/S both quickly agreed not to use the forced swim test on small animals.

AstraZeneca is the 12th-largest pharmaceutical company in the world, and Novo Nordisk A/S is close behind at number 15. These industry leaders are helping PETA and our international affiliates end abusive and pointless forced swim tests on small animals worldwide.

What Is the Forced Swim Test?

In these tests, experimenters drop animals – including mice, rats, guinea pigs, hamsters, and gerbils – into inescapable containers of water and watch them frantically struggle to free themselves.

The panicked animals desperately search for an escape route, even diving underwater, and fight to stay afloat. Some companies claim that the experiments could help develop cures for humans suffering from depression, but that assertion has been widely discredited by experts in the field.

What You Can Do

AstraZeneca and Novo Nordisk A/S join other pharmaceutical industry leaders, including Johnson & Johnson, AbbVie, and Roche, in introducing a companywide ban on the use of these cruel and pointless tests.

Help score more victories for animals used in forced swim experiments by urging Bristol-Myers Squibb, Eli Lilly, and Pfizer to get on this growing list today: