{"id":49854,"date":"2026-07-10T10:15:59","date_gmt":"2026-07-10T08:15:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/proefdiervrij.nl\/?p=49854"},"modified":"2026-07-10T10:15:59","modified_gmt":"2026-07-10T08:15:59","slug":"opinion-animal-testing-innovation-behind","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/proefdiervrij.nl\/en\/updates\/opinion-animal-testing-innovation-behind","title":{"rendered":"Opinion: As long as animal testing is the norm, innovation lags behind"},"content":{"rendered":"

This opinion piece by Debby Weijers (Director of Proefdiervrij) appeared in de Volkskrant on June 23.<\/strong><\/p>\n

While Brussels is finally charting a course towards a future without animal testing, the number of animal tests in the Netherlands has actually increased. Why do animal tests continue to occupy such a prominent place within scientific research?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Recently, the European Commission presented its long-awaited Roadmap Towards Phasing Out Animal Testing for Chemical Safety Assessments<\/a>, which describes how Europe intends to phase out its reliance on animal testing. Almost simultaneously, the latest edition of ZoDoende<\/a>, the annual overview of the use of laboratory animals, was published in the Netherlands.<\/p>\n

While ZoDoende shows that the number of animal tests has increased, the roadmap focuses on phasing out animal tests for mandatory safety and toxicity tests. In the Netherlands, approximately 100,000 animal tests were conducted for this category in 2024 (out of a total of 435,263 animal tests that year). However, the importance of the roadmap extends beyond the mandatory tests. By committing to phasing out animal testing, the European Commission is sending a strong signal.<\/p>\n

The example is followed<\/h2>\n

The fact that a broader shift is necessary is evident from the 230,464 animal tests that do not stem from a direct legal obligation. National or international regulators still prescribe animal testing for some safety and toxicity tests. However, for much fundamental and applied scientific research, that legal necessity does not exist. These are therefore tests that we can perform without animals, even without changes in regulations or their implementation, by switching to animal-free innovations.<\/p>\n

However, our preference for animal testing hinders this transition. Although the roadmap focuses specifically on animal testing for chemical safety assessments, the European Commission acknowledges that a fundamentally different assessment system is needed. Animal testing is no longer the self-evident gold standard. It is precisely this exemplary role that can help to break down the persistent preference for animal testing step by step, even outside of statutory safety tests. Animal testing preference hinders innovation<\/p>\n

Even when human-centered research methods are available and there is no legal obligation to use animals, researchers still opt for animal testing because it is well-known and often more easily accepted by funding bodies, ethics committees, scientific journals, and regulators.<\/p>\n

This is the so-called Animal Methods Bias: a systematic preference for animal testing within science, regulations, and publications. Research involving animal testing is published more quickly or is perceived as more reliable than research using innovative, human-centered methods.<\/p>\n

This creates a vicious cycle. Animal testing is used because it is the established norm, and it remains the norm because the system is designed for it. New methods must prove themselves time and again, whereas the familiar animal test is accepted more easily out of routine. In this way, innovation is slowed down, even when better research methods are within reach.<\/p>\n

Systemic change<\/h2>\n

That is precisely why systemic change is so important. Reducing animal testing is not just a matter of developing new technologies. It also requires changes in the way research is funded, evaluated, published, and regulated. Without these changes, promising innovations will remain stuck in pilot projects, while practice largely remains the same.<\/p>\n

The new European roadmap can play an important role in breaking the preference for animal testing. For instance, the European Commission acknowledges that animal testing is not a final destination, but an intermediate phase on the way to better, human-centered science. Consequently, there is now not only an ambition, but also a call to member states, researchers, funders, and regulators to actually accelerate the transition.<\/p>\n

ZoDoende retires<\/h2>\n

While the latest ZoDoende shows where we stand in the Netherlands, the European roadmap shows where we can \u2013 and must \u2013 go. Systemic change is not only crucial for the transition to animal-free innovation, but also a prerequisite for better science. Human-centered methods such as organ-on-a-chip, cell and tissue models can predict more accurately what works well in humans, in contrast to the entrenched route involving animal testing.<\/p>\n

Ambitions must now be translated into investments, policy, and the application of animal-free innovations. Otherwise, the European phase-out threatens to remain a paper promise. And that means not only that hundreds of thousands of animals are used unnecessarily, but also that we stick to research methods that only partially mimic human biology.<\/p>\n

By abandoning the preference for animal testing and opting for animal-free, human-centered models, we can assess the safety of substances more accurately and pave the way for better science and more effective innovations.<\/p>\n

Want to read more about the European Roadmap?<\/h2>\n

In this article<\/a>, we explain what it contains and why it sends such an important signal towards an animal-free future.<\/p>\n

Curious about the figures in the new ZoDoende?<\/h2>\n

We provide context<\/a> for what these 2024 figures say \u2013 and, importantly, what they do not.<\/p>\n

About Proefdiervrij<\/strong>
\nHow we treat animals says something about who we are as a society. Especially when those animals are used in research intended to make people better. Proefdiervrij is working towards a world without animal testing by making human-centered, animal-free science visible and accelerating it.<\/em><\/p>\n

That change is already underway. Increasingly, animal testing is being replaced by human-centered models that better show what happens inside the human body. Yet, animal testing often remains the standard. With 2030 as the target, we are working towards a tipping point where animal-free methods are the norm. In this way, we help let go of what no longer fits and build research that helps people, without using animals unnecessarily.<\/em><\/p>\n

It is time for humanity. The future is animal-free!<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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