On farms across China, bears are surgically mutilated and 'milked' each day for their gall bile. A constant stream of bile drizzles from the opening in the stomach of an ailing bear, splashing into a bowl beneath. They are kept in cages so small they are unable to stand or sit. These animals endure the most appalling levels of cruelty and neglect, and attempts to improve standards at two government-monitored farms in China have not alleviated even basic animal welfare problems.
Bear farming continues to jeopardize the survival of bears in the wild. In South East Asia, black bears are captured and sold to bear farms, while the vigorous marketing of bear bile products across the world has put a price on the head of every living bear.
There are now officially 247 bear farms across China, housing an estimated total of 7,002 bears. While TCM utilizes a total of 500 kg of bear bile every year, over 7,000 kg is now being produced, with the majority feeding a demand for products such as wines, tonics and eyedrops.
At the 3rd International Symposium on the Trade in Bear Parts, which was organised by Traffic East Asia in Seoul 1999, Chinese government representatives claimed that some Chinese farms had reached internationally agreed standards as captive breeding centres. This announcement signified their intention to secure permission from the Convention on the Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) to trade bear bile products internationally.
Please help end the torture.