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. But it is subject to change as our understanding of the facts evolves.
Novartis AG is a global pharmaceutical company whose core business model involves extensive animal testing for drug development and regulatory approval. The company’s research and development pipeline, spanning pharmaceuticals, generics, and biosimilars, relies on preclinical animal studies as a standard practice. This places animal testing as a central, ongoing component of its operations.
The company has been a significant target of animal rights campaigns due to this activity. In the mid-2000s, Novartis was named by the Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAC) campaign as a customer of Huntingdon Life Sciences, a contract research organization known for animal testing. By 2009, the Animal Rights Militia claimed actions against the company, including a reported grave theft. In response to sustained protests, Novartis sought and obtained a 2014 UK High Court injunction to restrict animal rights demonstrations at its UK facilities and against its employees, citing threats and intimidation. While the injunction addressed protest tactics, it did not alter the underlying animal testing practices that prompted the campaigns.
Novartis AG conducts animal testing as an integral part of its pharmaceutical research and development. The company's integrated reports explicitly state that animal research remains "key to medical advances," and it maintains dedicated career paths for animal research personnel. This activity is fundamental to its business model as a global pharmaceutical developer and is required for regulatory compliance in bringing new drugs to market.
A specific incident highlights the scale and ethical implications of this reliance. In 2019, the FDA disclosed that Novartis's gene therapy unit, AveXis, had manipulated animal testing data related to the development of its $2.1 million drug, Zolgensma. The company informed regulators that personnel had manipulated data from product testing in animals, a disclosure made only after the therapy had received approval. The FDA stated the company's actions were being assessed for potential civil or criminal penalties. This case demonstrates how animal testing is not only a routine practice but also a point of regulatory and ethical vulnerability for the company.
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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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