PETA Applauds Congressional Letter Calling on NIH to End Funding for Animal Experimentation in Foreign Labs

For Immediate Release:
July 17, 2025

Contact:
Tasgola Bruner 202-483-7382

PETA applauds a letter sent today to National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, urging the agency to stop funding for experiments on animals conducted in foreign laboratories. The letter, signed by Rep. Troy Nehls (R-Texas-22) and Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), highlights critical concerns about the lack of oversight and inadequate standards in these foreign facilities.

Between 2011 and 2021, NIH gave away more than $2.2 billion in grants in 45 countries to fund disturbing and unnecessary experiments on animals, including genetically altering cats, infecting bats with deadly diseases, and subjecting monkeys to extreme and harmful conditions. PETA’s Cease Animal Research Grants Overseas (CARGO) Act (H.R. 1085/S. 1802), led by the same members of Congress who signed today’s letter, and Rep. Dina Titus (D-Nev.-01) and Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), seeks to end NIH funding for such practices and ensure that government funds are no longer used for experiments on animals in facilities lacking proper oversight.

“PETA is proud to have spearheaded the CARGO Act, and we are deeply grateful to Rep. Nehls and Sen. Scott for not only signing today’s letter but also serving as the lead sponsors of this critical legislation,” says PETA Senior Vice President Kathy Guillermo. “This effort represents a significant step in halting cruel and wasteful animal experimentation abroad, and it aligns with the Trump Administration’s broader shift toward more relevant, non-animal research methods; we are excited to continue working alongside these dedicated lawmakers to pass the CARGO Act and ensure that taxpayer money is no longer used to support pointless and unethical research.”

PETA also acknowledges the leadership of Rep. Titus and Sen. Booker, who have been steadfast champions of the CARGO Act and have played a crucial role in advocating for its passage.

Foreign laboratories are not held to the same standards as their U.S. counterparts, with no inspections of laboratories or audits of NIH-funded experiments. The CARGO Act was introduced following a PETA investigation into Caucaseco Scientific Research Center, a discredited Colombian laboratory with a history of violating animal care standards. The center received more than $17 million in U.S. funding, and NIH encouraged—during the previous administration— additional funding even after it was caught confining monkeys in filthy conditions, leaving them to die from infected wounds, and starving mice to the point of cannibalism.

PETA’s exposé led to multiple investigations by local authorities, the rescue of 108 monkeys and 180 mice, the retraction of a research publication, and expressions of concern on four other papers, including one co-authored by an NIH official.

Monkeys confined in filthy, decrepit cages at the Caucaseco Scientific Research Center, which received millions of dollars from NIH. Image obtained through public records law by PETA.

The letter’s request for NIH to immediately cease funding animal experiments in foreign labs is a crucial step toward protecting animals and ensuring taxpayer dollars are used responsibly. PETA remains committed to advocating for legislative and policy changes that prioritize ethical, practical, and non-animal research.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to experiment on”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow the group on X, Facebook, or Instagram.

Note: PETA supports animal rights, opposes all forms of animal exploitation, and educates the public on those issues. PETA does not directly or indirectly participate or intervene in any political campaign on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate for public office or any political party.