Welcome to our
Animal Welfare Page!

On this page, you can expect exciting insights into the topic of animal welfare and the continuously advancing research in this field. Discover engaging and up-to-date topics, including the latest scientific developments, and deepen your knowledge of the 3R principle (Reduce, Refine, Replace).

Here, you will find exciting insights into the subject of animal welfare and the ever-evolving state of research. Discover the latest fascinating topics and new scientific advances, and expand your knowledge of the ‘3R’ principle (Reduce, Refine, Replace). The 3R principle is the catalyst that drives our efforts and plays a crucial role in minimizing animal testing, optimizing its implementation and promoting alternative methods that enable animal testing to be replaced – always with the aim of improving animal welfare in the long term.

However, the fact is that animal experiments are still indispensable for researching pervasive diseases such as various forms of cancer, multiple sclerosis or Alzheimer’s and for developing new treatment approaches. Many patients rely on effective therapies that significantly improve their quality of life. That is why it is all the more important that pharmaceutical companies give top priority to handling laboratory animals responsibly and that the 10-point Animal Welfare Charter signed by Interpharma’s member companies, launched in 2010, is applied consistently.

This page also contains the comprehensive Animal Welfare Report, which looks at current developments and progress in this field.

Best regards,

Dr. René P. Buholzer

CEO, Interpharma

Implementing the 3Rs with organoids

The development of organoids marks a turning point in biomedical research because organoids mimic human organs. They can be used to create realistic disease models and help reduce or even completely replace animal testing in accordance with the 3R principles.

Interview with Professor Dr. Matthias P. Lütolf: Organoids

Interview with Professor Matthias P. Lütolf on progress in organoid technology, how the technology is being used in pharmaceutical research and the Institute of Human Biology

One Health: The health of humans and animals belongs together

The COVID-19 pandemic reminded us of the devastating consequences that the transmission of pathogens from animals to humans can have. It’s not only the animals themselves that suffer from epidemics and diseases. According to the One Health approach, they need a good supply of medicines to protect their own health and that of humans.

Interview with Dr. Birgit Ledermann: AAALAC

The Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care (AAALAC) International is an independent non-profit organisation that promotes animal welfare in science through voluntary evaluation and accreditation programmes. Several research sites belonging to Interpharma member companies are AAALAC certified.

Interview with Dr. René Buholzer: Corona vaccines and animal testing

The research-based pharmaceutical industry has contributed enormously in the engagement against the pandemic. On the one hand, companies diverted research and development resources in short order, allowing research to be pursued on various vaccines against SARS-CoV-2, with the result that the population was fully supplied with vaccines.

3R in preclinical research

The systematic use of the 3Rs principles of Reduce, Refine and Replace have led to significant improvements in preclinical research over the last few decades. The reduction in animal experiments could be even greater if alternative methods were more widely recognised by the regulatory authorities. But what else might be possible if data from in vivo experiments was centrally available and widely shared?

Interview with Dr. Tobias Schnitzer: Culture of Care

We are aware that the use of animals in medical research comes with huge responsibility. We take the concerns around animal experiments in medical research very seriously and are committed to handling animals in a responsible manner.

Interview with Dr. Jenny Sandström: 3RCC

I had already spent some years working in research management at the Swiss Centre for Applied Human Toxicology (SCAHT) and the vacancy as executive director of the 3RCC seemed ideal to me.

Ten years of the Animal Welfare Charter

Ten years ago, research-based pharmaceutical companies in Switzerland committed to the responsible handling of animals in research with the 10-point Animal Welfare Charter, which set the ball rolling not only in Switzerland but also internationally.

Interview with Dr. Daniel Breutstedt: Mendel’s laws of inheritance

Research institutions keep more animals than they use in experiments. Daniel Breustedt, Team Leader in the Scientific Operations/Comparative Medicine department at Novartis’ NIBR, explains why this cannot be completely avoided and what options are available for reducing animal use.

Breeding, keeping and transportation of laboratory animals

Animals that are used for experiments in Switzerland are generally bred specifically for this purpose. How the animals are bred, kept, transported and received at the destination laboratory is strictly regulated. Animal well-being comes first at all times.

Transferability of animal test results to humans

Breakthrough innovative medicines and treatments are partly the result of animal experiments. Given the biological similarities between humans and animals, it is possible to transfer the results of experiments.

Development of vaccines and tests for SARS-CoV-2

Just a year after the outbreak of the pandemic, various highly effective vaccines were already available. The first highly automated coronavirus tests also allowed test capacity to be ramped up early on. Without the responsible use of animals this would not have been possible.

Culture of Care

Today, the pharmaceutical industry thinks holistically about well-being in medical research: animal welfare and a caring corporate culture go hand in hand.

Dutch ban on animal experiments

In 2016, the Netherlands considered a complete ban on animal experiments by 2025. The plan was rejected: it is not possible without animal experiments.

Fighting Covid-19 together

With its cross-border collaboration, the research-based pharmaceutical industry is making an unparalleled effort to combat the Covid-19 crisis. And animal experiments form a part of this effort that is indispens- able for the development of new medicines and vaccines

Severity degree 3 experiments

Animal welfare legislation in Switzerland is one of the strictest worldwide. Animal experiments may only be conducted if no alternatives are available.

The long path to a medicine

Many years of high-precision work and interdisciplinary expertise go into a medicine. To ensure that medication is reliably effective in humans, research with animals is absolutely essential in the development of new medicines.

Animal experiments in Switzerland

Animal welfare legislation in Switzerland is among the strictest in the world. Animal experiments may only be carried out if no alternatives are available. Strict regulations also apply for the housing of laboratory animals, as they do for the training and continuing education of researchers who work with animals.

Working groups

A large number of projects and working groups have already been in existence for many years, promoting national and international cooperation in the field of the 3Rs and benefiting the well-being of laboratory animals.

Report 2023

The aim of the 3Rs principles is to Replace as many animal experiments as possible, Reduce the number of laboratory animals used, and keep their stress to a minimum (Refine).

The animal welfare series

Hope for people with rare disease – new treatment approaches thanks partly to animal research

Report 2025

The aim of the 3Rs principles is to replace as many animal experiments as possible, to reduce the number of laboratory animals and to minimize their stress to the greatest extent possible (refine).

Newsletter

Welcome to our Animal Welfare Page!