Overview
Animal Welfare
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Responsibility
Responsibilities of the Animal Welfare Officer and the Animal Welfare Committee
Wherever Bayer conducts 
animal studies, an expert is always appointed to deal with animal welfare matters. This applies worldwide. Without exception. In Germany, it is the Animal Welfare Officer who takes on this important responsibility. The influence of this person’s position is indicated by the fact that he is has managerial authority in all matters of animal welfare. He acts with the full support of the Board of Management.
The Animal Welfare Officer monitors all the laboratories and institutes within Bayer AG which are involved in animal studies. In real terms, this means Bayer HealthCare (Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals and Animal Health research),Bayer CropScience (crop protection) and Bayer’s service subsidiary Currenta (environmental matters, training).
animal studies, an expert is always appointed to deal with animal welfare matters. This applies worldwide. Without exception. In Germany, it is the Animal Welfare Officer who takes on this important responsibility. The influence of this person’s position is indicated by the fact that he is has managerial authority in all matters of animal welfare. He acts with the full support of the Board of Management.The Animal Welfare Officer monitors all the laboratories and institutes within Bayer AG which are involved in animal studies. In real terms, this means Bayer HealthCare (Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals and Animal Health research),
Bayer CropScience (crop protection) and Bayer’s service subsidiary Currenta (environmental matters, training).Advising scientists
The Animal Welfare Officers and their colleagues advise scientists within the company who wish to conduct animal studies for research purposes on subjects such as the legal requirements with which they must comply and the principles which are applied within Bayer. They also advise on the selection of appropriate animal study methods and the appropriate species to use. The Animal Management Institute also purchases all study animals, specially manufactured laboratory animal feed and supplies transgenic mice from its own breeding unit.
External laboratories and academic research institutes are employed by Bayer to conduct animal studies only if their working methods are in keeping with Bayer’s principles. The Animal Welfare Officers also monitor this - in the form of a personal site inspection.
animal study methods and the appropriate species to use. The Animal Management Institute also purchases all study animals, specially manufactured laboratory animal feed and supplies transgenic mice from its own breeding unit.External laboratories and academic research institutes are employed by Bayer to conduct animal studies only if their working methods are in keeping with Bayer’s principles. The Animal Welfare Officers also monitor this - in the form of a personal site inspection.
Cooperation with the authorities
Cooperation with the animal welfare authorities is another of the Animal Welfare Officers’ responsibilities. They apply for study and (if necessary) import licenses and compile the data which have to be submitted in accordance with the ordinance governing the notification of laboratory animals. In other words: the Animal Welfare Officers and their colleagues are contacts both internally and externally - not just for Bayer employees but also for the supervisory authorities and for the media.
Responsibility for further education
When animal studies are conducted, this is always done on the basis of the latest scientific findings and methods. The Animal Welfare Officers also play a role here: they post information on current developments in the management and care of laboratory animals on internal websites - and this up-to-date information is therefore immediately accessible for all employees.
Finally, continuing education requirements include participating in specialist conferences, ongoing dialogue with co-workers and involvement in national and international animal welfare committees and in pharmaceutical industry association committees.
The main objectives are:
Finally, continuing education requirements include participating in specialist conferences, ongoing dialogue with co-workers and involvement in national and international animal welfare committees and in pharmaceutical industry association committees.
The main objectives are:
- to monitor and continuously improve levels of animal welfare
- to represent the interests of the industry in the shaping of the legal framework conditions for work involving animal studies.
The Animal Welfare Officers and their colleagues ensure that:
- animal studies are kept to a minimum;
- each animal study is preceded by a careful internal and external review;
- the most suitable animal species is used for each study;
- animal husbandry and care is based on the latest scientific findings;
- all external partners permit stringent monitoring;
- only animals bred specifically for studies are used.
Mission for Bayer’s Animal Welfare Committee
Bayer’s principles for animal welfare and animal studies underscore our sense of responsibility for the safety of our products and thus for people, animals and the environment - and concomitantly for the well-being of our laboratory animals. It is the declared goal of Bayer to minimize the use of laboratory animals and to use substitute and refined methods wherever possible. Bayer also works to continuously improve the methods used in those animal studies which are still necessary. In addition, Bayer engages actively in 3R research (reduction, refinement and replacement of animal studies), which will help to develop and validate methods with reduced or without animal use. Our policy makes provision for the establishment of an Animal Welfare Committee to steer and coordinate related activities at corporate level. The organization is managed by our Corporate Animal Welfare Coordinator (AWC). Further members of the committee are local experts responsible for animal welfare, representatives of the subsidiaries as well as other functions, who liaise with national and regional authorities.
It is the task of this Global Animal Welfare Committee to
It is the task of this Global Animal Welfare Committee to
- support the implementation of legislative requirements within the company considering most advanced developments in animal welfare research
- gather and disseminate guidelines for animal welfare and animals studies available on corporate level
- develop global, essential principles for the training and qualification of our staff members and of CROs based on local regulatory, scientific and ethical requirements
- supervise the careful selection and the auditing of external partners (e.g. CROs, vendors) with respect to the essential principles
In all countries which have legislation on animal welfare and experimentation Bayer is fully compliant to the legal requirements. In countries without specific animal welfare laws, Bayer applies the company's own principles. The Animal Welfare Committee is defining essential standards for animal housing and experimentation valid on a corporate level. Bayer ensures that their principles are also applied to animal procurement and transportation, housing and husbandry, environmental enrichment, social and behavioral preferences, hygiene and experimental procedures. Finally, the Animal Welfare Committee is fostering the dialogue with all stakeholders in this field with the goal to create an open environment in order to continuously analyze and advance animal welfare within the company. Through our Animal Welfare Coordinator and the Animal Welfare Committee we ensure, that the Bayer principles for animal welfare and animal studies are applied on corporate level.
environmental enrichment, social and behavioral preferences, hygiene and experimental procedures. Finally, the Animal Welfare Committee is fostering the dialogue with all stakeholders in this field with the goal to create an open environment in order to continuously analyze and advance animal welfare within the company. Through our Animal Welfare Coordinator and the Animal Welfare Committee we ensure, that the Bayer principles for animal welfare and animal studies are applied on corporate level.
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