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Astrazeneca PLC

AZN

Health Care

2

exclusion reasons

1 theme

Animal Welfare (2)
AZN Health Care Current as of March 2026

Astrazeneca PLC is screened out under 2 exclusion reasons spanning 1 issue category.

This page is part of our public exclusion list — a transparency tool that shows which companies we screen out and why. It is not investment advice, and it is not an accusation. It is a statement of values.

Animal Exploitation
Since Jan 3, 2022

AstraZeneca PLC conducts animal testing as part of its pharmaceutical research and development. The company states that animal welfare is a priority, but its operations have been linked to facilities with documented histories of animal welfare concerns. Specifically, the company has sourced animals from Huntingdon Life Sciences (HLS), a contract testing organization where investigations from 1997 through 2012 established patterns of egregious animal abuse as a daily norm. In 2013, public opposition arose over AstraZeneca's plans to transfer beagles to UK laboratories for testing. As a global pharmaceutical company, AstraZeneca's core business of drug discovery and safety testing inherently relies on the use of animals, placing it within the scope of commercial animal exploitation.

Animal Testing & Research
Since Jul 28, 2021

AstraZeneca PLC is a global pharmaceutical company whose core business of developing and testing new medicines requires animal testing as part of regulatory compliance and product development. The company acknowledges that animal studies are a vital part of biomedical research and are required by global regulators before new medicines can be approved for human clinical trials.

The company's practices are subject to independent assurance, as indicated by reports from Bureau Veritas UK Limited regarding its animal use standards. AstraZeneca has been directly referenced in industry and regulatory contexts concerning the design and conduct of animal studies in pharmaceutical toxicology.

Research Sources 1 organization
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Companies appear on our exclusion list based on our investment judgment — not because they've done anything illegal. This is a difference of values and opinion, not an accusation of wrongdoing. Exclusion does not constitute a recommendation against investing in any company, and absence from the list does not constitute a recommendation to invest.

This information is provided for educational and transparency purposes only and should not be relied upon as investment advice. Data is drawn from independent watchdogs, NGOs, government registries, and Ethical Capital's ongoing research — see Research Sources for the full list.

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