Animal Welfare

Hundreds of Physicians Rebuke Duke University for Killing Animals to Train Medical Students

Retrieved on: 
Friday, February 2, 2024
University, Education, Health, Publishing, Pharmaceutical, Communications, Research, Animal Welfare, Public Policy, Government, Science, Clinical Trials, COVID-19, Medical school, Molina Healthcare, Anatomy, Physiology, Dog, Stanford University, Harvard University, Animal, Cadaver, Physician, FACC, UNC, Ethics, Letter, Durham station, Student, Cleveland Clinic, Johns Hopkins, Nursing

In a letter sent today to Duke, 552 physicians are urging the university to halt the controversial practice of using and killing animals to train medical students.

Key Points: 
  • In a letter sent today to Duke, 552 physicians are urging the university to halt the controversial practice of using and killing animals to train medical students.
  • The letter, spearheaded by the national medical ethics group Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, points out that no other medical school in the United States or Canada is known to kill animals to train students, and none has done so since 2016.
  • Duke only reinstated the practice, in which invasive surgical procedures are performed on pigs, recently and has separately come under fire by medical training experts.
  • “Duke is better than this,” said John Pippin, MD, FACC, director of academic affairs for the Physicians Committee.

Tetra Tech Wins $24 Million USAID Biodiversity and Ecosystem Conservation Contract

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, January 4, 2024
Data Management, Manufacturing, Technology, Finance, Consulting, Animal Welfare, Professional Services, Other Natural Resources, Environment, Public Policy, Government, Environmental Health, Forest Products, Natural Resources, Telecommunications, Mobile, Wireless, Engineering, Tetra, Tetra Tech, USAID, Partnership, Biodiversity, Royal, International development, Private sector, Climate change, United, Face, Carbon, Organization, Renewable energy

Tetra Tech, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTEK), a leading provider of high-end consulting and engineering services, announced today that the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has awarded the Company a $24 million, single-award contract to preserve biodiversity, conserve natural resources, and enhance community livelihoods in Cambodia.

Key Points: 
  • Tetra Tech, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTEK), a leading provider of high-end consulting and engineering services, announced today that the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has awarded the Company a $24 million, single-award contract to preserve biodiversity, conserve natural resources, and enhance community livelihoods in Cambodia.
  • Through the USAID Conserve Activity, Tetra Tech’s climate experts will support Cambodian partners to protect critical ecosystems using a community-led natural resource management approach.
  • Our technical specialists will support USAID Conserve to implement innovative programs that stimulate economic growth and promote climate-smart, community-based enterprises, including ecotourism.
  • “Tetra Tech is pleased to use our data-driven, Leading with Science® approach to support USAID in providing environmentally sustainable development solutions and helping Cambodia reach its goal of being carbon neutral by 2050.”

Prop 12 Enforcement Begins: Landmark Crate-Free Animal Welfare Law Fully Implemented in New Year

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, December 20, 2023
State, Local, Other Natural Resources, Other Policy Issues, Food, Beverage, Agriculture, Natural Resources, Retail, Animal Welfare, Public Policy, Government, Environment, Sustainability, Question, Pregnancy, Vitamin Cottage Natural Grocers, Multimedia, Restaurant, Sale, Synovial joint, 2018 California Proposition 12, Meat, Farmer, System, Farm, Supreme court, Niman Ranch, Supreme, Pret a Manger, Animal, Human, Tail, Shake Shack, QFC, Question 3

Beginning January 1, 2024, fresh pork sold in California and Massachusetts must be gestation-crate free as the two states’ historic animal welfare laws—Proposition 12 and Question 3—are fully implemented and enforceable.

Key Points: 
  • Beginning January 1, 2024, fresh pork sold in California and Massachusetts must be gestation-crate free as the two states’ historic animal welfare laws—Proposition 12 and Question 3—are fully implemented and enforceable.
  • View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20231220484161/en/
    Beginning January 1, fresh pork, including bacon, sold in California and Massachusetts must be gestation-crate free as the two states’ historic animal welfare laws—Proposition 12 and Question 3—are fully implemented and enforceable.
  • Prop 12 is the right thing for both the animals and farmers, but it needs to be done in a structured manner where pork producers have support and dedicated markets.
  • While gestation crates are the dominant industry practice today, they are out of touch with consumer expectations on base-level humane animal care.

Niman Ranch Statement on FDA Report Showing Rising Antibiotic Use for Livestock

Retrieved on: 
Friday, December 8, 2023
FDA, White House, Federal Government, Health, General Health, State, Local, Agriculture, Natural Resources, Animal Welfare, Congressional News, Views, Fitness & Nutrition, Public Policy, Government, Chicken, Animal, Meat, Annual report, Food, Niman Ranch, Environment, Livestock, Cattle, Poultry farming

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has released their annual report tracking sales of antibiotics for livestock .

Key Points: 
  • The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has released their annual report tracking sales of antibiotics for livestock .
  • Overall, medically important antibiotic sales for meat production increased 4% between 2021 and 2022, with pigs accounting for 43% of sales, cattle 41%, turkeys 12% and chickens 2%.
  • “As a longtime leader in the no antibiotics ever sector, it is dispiriting to see the use of medically important antibiotics on the rise for livestock production.
  • Raising livestock without antibiotic overuse is paramount to the future efficacy of these life-saving drugs and reducing the world health crisis of antibiotic resistance.

More Than 1,100 Physicians, Health Care Professionals, and Scientists Boycott Medical Journal

Retrieved on: 
Monday, November 20, 2023
Research, Animal Welfare, Publishing, Public Policy, Government, Communications, Clinical Trials, Health, Pharmaceutical, Science, Infant, Policy, Ethics, Milk, Animal, MDPI, University, MD, MPH, Human, Molina Healthcare, Letter, Medical device, Dietary supplement, Nutrient

The boycott, which also applies to Nutrients’ publisher, MDPI, comes after repeated requests to the journal’s editors asking them to institute sound editorial practices.

Key Points: 
  • The boycott, which also applies to Nutrients’ publisher, MDPI, comes after repeated requests to the journal’s editors asking them to institute sound editorial practices.
  • A letter sent to those editors today, Nov. 20, 2023, says “As a community of scientists and health care professionals, we have lost confidence in Nutrients and MDPI.
  • Pigs were fed different infant formulas and human milk with and without an added probiotic and had their gut microbiota analyzed.
  • Richard Schmidt, MD, an obstetrician and gynecologist who specializes in fertility problems in Mountainview, Calif., is among those who are boycotting the journal.

USAID-funded TRANSFORM Project Secures Additional Private Sector Support for Antimicrobial Use Stewardship Principles, Now Includes Over 30% of Global Broiler Production

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, November 14, 2023
Pharmaceutical, Environmental Health, Animal Welfare, Agriculture, Infectious Diseases, Food, Beverage, Natural Resources, Environment, Retail, Veterinary, Health, Public Policy, Government, Global health, Organization, Hope, USAID, PFI, Heifer International, Infection, Zoonosis, Global Health, Risk, One Health, Cargill, Multimedia, Private sector, VIPA, Ecosystem, Animal, Global Health Security Agenda, AMR, ABPA, IPC, Human, Diagnosis, TBA, Poultry, Poultry farming

As part of TRANSFORM, the International Poultry Council (IPC) is driving global change within animal agriculture by uniting poultry industry associations and private sector organizations to support antimicrobial use stewardship principles that guide actions to avoid the need to use, but when needed, ensure proper use of antimicrobials.

Key Points: 
  • As part of TRANSFORM, the International Poultry Council (IPC) is driving global change within animal agriculture by uniting poultry industry associations and private sector organizations to support antimicrobial use stewardship principles that guide actions to avoid the need to use, but when needed, ensure proper use of antimicrobials.
  • By adopting or endorsing the principles, organizations commit to encouraging or taking action that centers around four key points.
  • Second, organizations agree to adopt farm management practices that improve animal health and would reduce the need for antimicrobial use.
  • “By advancing science-based antimicrobial use stewardship principles, we are able to create an ecosystem where animal health improves, the need for antibiotic use decreases, and animal production increases.

Novel Farms Co-founders Named as Breakthrough Energy Fellows

Retrieved on: 
Monday, October 16, 2023
Environment, Green Technology, Other Science, Food Tech, Public Policy, Government, Professional Services, Restaurant, Bar, Environmental Policy, Environmental Issues, Environmental Health, Agriculture, Natural Resources, Animal Welfare, Small Business, Science, Climate Change, Other Energy, Supermarket, Sustainability, Technology, Specialty, Alternative Energy, Energy, Food, Beverage, Retail, Climate change, Public, CSO, Presidential Innovation Fellows, Carbon, Steel, Breakthrough Energy, Education, Biodiversity loss, Meat, Hydrogen, Fermentation, Farm, Renewable energy

Nieves Martinez Marshall , CEO and Co-founder, and Michelle Lu , CSO and Co-founder of Novel Farms were named as Fellows, working in the cultivated meat industry.

Key Points: 
  • Nieves Martinez Marshall , CEO and Co-founder, and Michelle Lu , CSO and Co-founder of Novel Farms were named as Fellows, working in the cultivated meat industry.
  • Novel Farms leverages a novel microbial fermentation approach to create a scaffolding platform that can significantly reduce cultivated meat production costs.
  • The Breakthrough Energy Fellows (BE Fellows) program provides the world’s best and brightest innovators with crucial resources, including research funding, mentorship, education, and access to the extensive Breakthrough Energy network.
  • "Building a clean energy future requires constant innovation and new ideas, so I’m thrilled to welcome our third cohort of Fellows whose groundbreaking work around the world unlock new possibilities, " said Ashley Grosh, Vice President of Breakthrough Energy Fellows.

Colossal Biosciences Joins BioRescue in Its Mission to Save the Northern White Rhino From Extinction

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, September 19, 2023
Research, Environmental Policy, Environmental Issues, Animal Welfare, Environment, Genetics, Health Technology, Science, Biotechnology, Climate Change, Health, Public Policy, Government, Human, Colossal Biosciences, DNA, Partnership, Population study, Zoo, Ol Pejeta Conservancy, Veterinary medicine, WHO/Health Action International Project on Medicine Prices and Availability, Central African Republic, Coronavirus Scientific Advisory Board, Multimedia, Congo, Organization, Biodiversity, Northern white rhinoceros, Democratic republic, Leibniz Association, Entrepreneurship, Southern white rhinoceros, Ecosystem, Conservation, Czech, Synthetic biology, Genome, Disease, Hunting, Agriculture, Forestry, Ceratotherium, Colossal

Colossal Biosciences (“Colossal”), the world’s first de-extinction company, and BioRescue , a consortium initiating and leading the scientific rescue mission of the northern white rhino employing advanced assisted reproduction technologies and stem cell associated techniques, have teamed up to save the northern white rhino from extinction.

Key Points: 
  • Colossal Biosciences (“Colossal”), the world’s first de-extinction company, and BioRescue , a consortium initiating and leading the scientific rescue mission of the northern white rhino employing advanced assisted reproduction technologies and stem cell associated techniques, have teamed up to save the northern white rhino from extinction.
  • (Photo by Ami Vitale)
    The northern white rhino (Ceratotherium simum cottoni) is considered to be functionally extinct in the wild as a direct result of poaching.
  • “The northern white rhino is the world’s rarest large mammal and thousands of species are interlinked to its existence,” says Hildebrandt.
  • Colossal will assist the rescue mission by leveraging genome sequencing and gene editing methods to save the endangered species.

The SBBRG Foundation Sponsors Heartland Animal Shelter

Retrieved on: 
Friday, August 18, 2023
Veterinary, Animal Welfare, Pets, Public Policy, Government, Philanthropy, Health, Fund Raising, Consumer, Foundation, Partnership, Attention, HAS, Animal, Dog, Cat

Heartland Animal Shelter (HAS) received a donation from the SBB Research Group Foundation , which partners with local nonprofits through its Champion A Charity Program.

Key Points: 
  • Heartland Animal Shelter (HAS) received a donation from the SBB Research Group Foundation , which partners with local nonprofits through its Champion A Charity Program.
  • Heartland Animal Shelter believes it is of utmost importance to create a warm, safe, and comfortable space for their feline and canine residents.
  • Earlier this year, the SBBRG Foundation and the Heartland team joined forces to create fleece blankets for the dogs and cats of HAS in Wheeling, IL.
  • Beyond the heartwarming blanket-making activity, the SBBRG Foundation and Heartland Animal Shelter partnership encompasses broader initiatives.

Elon Musk Company Neuralink Given Free Pass for Animal Welfare Act Violations, USDA Reveals in Letter to Congress 

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, July 20, 2023
Science, Research, Congressional News, Views, Animal Welfare, Public Policy, Government, Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, University of California, Davis, Neuralink, Policy, Animal Welfare Act, Record, Esophagus, Skull, AWA, Brain, Stomach, Paralysis, Congress, UC, Patient, USDA, Vilsack, Blood, Ulcer, Elon, Pharmaceutical industry

Elon Musk’s brain-computer interface company Neuralink violated the federal Animal Welfare Act and received a free pass from the agency responsible for enforcing the law.

Key Points: 
  • Elon Musk’s brain-computer interface company Neuralink violated the federal Animal Welfare Act and received a free pass from the agency responsible for enforcing the law.
  • That’s what the USDA wrote last week in a response to letters from members of Congress.
  • Those letters requested updates about a reported USDA Office of Inspector General investigation into Neuralink and recent revelations of serious conflicts of interest within the company.
  • The 2019 incident involved a macaque identified only as “Animal 8” by UC Davis, where Neuralink paid to conduct experiments until 2020.