Call to ban wild-caught primate imports amid welfare and health concerns

Call to ban wild-caught primate imports amid welfare and health concerns | Photo: Joy Ernst

In October 2025, Humane World for Animals Canada called on the federal government to impose an immediate ban on the import, sale, and use of wild-caught primates, citing serious welfare violations, mounting conservation concerns, and increasing public health risks. The organisation’s campaign reflects a growing international reckoning over the ethics and legality of the global primate trade, which has surged in the wake of the pandemic.

Mounting welfare concerns

The group’s executive director, Rebecca Aldworth, described the capture and export of wild macaques as a process steeped in cruelty. The highly intelligent and social animals endure extreme distress when torn from their natural habitats, confined in cramped crates, and transported over long distances. Once in Canada, many are sent to biomedical research facilities where they are used in experiments, often under conditions that fall short of modern welfare expectations.

Campaigners have urged that importers bear full financial responsibility for improving conditions for any macaques already in Canada. The proposal also calls for investment in cruelty-free research, shifting towards models based on human biology that may deliver more accurate and ethical scientific outcomes.

Conservation and trade pressures

The long-tailed macaque, a species once considered common, was listed as Endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in 2022. According to trade data, Canada and the United States together account for nearly 99% of global wild-caught macaque imports since the pandemic, reflecting the scale of demand driven by biomedical research.

Recent statistics from Statistics Canada reveal a stark trend: macaque imports from Cambodia surged by 500% in 2023, following the tightening of U.S. restrictions on the same trade. The rise coincided with growing scrutiny of Cambodian wildlife exports, after several senior officials were implicated in the illegal trafficking of primates destined for laboratories abroad.

In January 2025, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) recommended suspending all macaque trade from Cambodia, citing “serious concerns” about legality and sustainability. Yet, despite these warnings, Canada’s import figures continued to climb.

Public health implications

Beyond ethical and conservation concerns, experts warn that importing wild primates carries significant zoonotic risks. Wild-caught macaques are known carriers of diseases such as tuberculosis, which can spread to humans and other animals through close contact. Humane World for Animals argues that the trade not only threatens endangered species but also undermines public health security, echoing lessons learned during the COVID-19 crisis about the dangers of wildlife exploitation.

Government response and broader reform

A spokesperson for Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin stated that the government remains committed to protecting biodiversity and aligning with international wildlife trade standards. Canada is also working to “refine, reduce, and replace” animal testing, a principle consistent with the broader goals of Sustainable Development Goal 15: Life on Land.

However, animal welfare organisations contend that policy ambition must now translate into decisive action. Transparency remains limited, with campaigners calling for the Canadian Council on Animal Care to release detailed, publicly accessible data on primate use in research.

A moment for ethical transition

The call to ban wild-caught primate imports places Canada at a crossroads between scientific progress and moral responsibility. With both conservation and health concerns mounting, campaigners argue that continued participation in the wild primate trade is increasingly indefensible.

Canada’s next move could set a precedent for ethical research practices globally, aligning with a growing consensus that protecting biodiversity and advancing science need not be opposing goals.

For more information on global efforts to end the trade in wild-caught primates and promote humane research alternatives, readers can explore resources from Humane World for Animals and IUCN.