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Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
One of the challenges that PETA faces in its campaign to put an end to animal testing is the fact many of these tests have become entrenched in international testing guidelines, most notably those of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). An economic alliance of 30 member countries, including the U.S., Canada, Australia, Japan, and the European Union, the OECD works to promote international consistency in many areas, including the testing, labeling, and regulation of chemicals. One of the OECD's main activities in this regard is the development of guidelines for the screening and testing of chemicals' effects on human health and the environment. Nearly 100 OECD test guidelines are currently "on the books," of which nearly half are animal-poisoning studies.
In order to gain entry into high-level OECD meetings--with the goal of promoting greater international acceptance of non-animal test methods and the deletion of their animal-based counterparts--the International Council on Animal Protection in OECD Programs (ICAPO) was founded. In addition to PETA, ICAPO's other members include the Animal Alliance of Canada, the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection, the Doris Day Animal League, the Eurogroup for Animal Welfare, the European Coalition to End Animal Experiments, the Humane Society of the United States, the Japanese Anti-Vivisection Association, and the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.
ICAPO was formally admitted to the OECD in 2002 as an "invited expert" and the international voice of the animal protection community. Since that time, we have commented on dozens of proposals for new test guidelines, draft reports, and other technical documents. As a founding member of ICAPO, PETA has also been able to send its science policy advisor to precedent-setting international meetings and conferences, which has allowed us to more effectively advocate for good science and the development and use of non-animal test methods. Our accomplishments to date include the following:
- Influencing the international acceptance of three new, non-animal OECD test guidelines as replacements for animal tests for skin corrosion, phototoxicity, and skin absorption
- Securing a more prominent role of non-animal methods for the testing of chemicals for "endocrine disrupting" effects, including the formation of a special OECD focus group dedicated to this purpose
- Convincing world governments that animal tests must be held to the same scientific standard as non-animal methods
- Securing the deletion of the test guideline for a notoriously cruel animal test
The global implications of these accomplishments alone will spare tens of thousands of animals from suffering and death in chemical-poisoning studies.
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