Grape King Bio — Taiwan’s Leading Beverage, Biotech Co., Ltd. — Ban Animal Testing After Promoted by PETA, KiTA

For immediate release:
February 16, 2022

Contact:
Tasgola Bruner 202-483-7382

Taipei – After discussions with PETA and Kindness to Animals’ partner organization (KiTA), Biological grapes—The largest biotech fermented health food company in Taiwan and maker of popular reishi products and ComeBest energy drinks — has banned all animal testing that is not required by law clear demand.

The company’s new policy states that it “prioritizes human research and does not conduct, fund, or commission/hire third parties to conduct animal experiments that are not expressly required by law. If the law has not been updated and it is inevitable that… animal testing…, we will ask the responsible parties to follow the 3Rs (replace, reduce, refine)” [English translation].

Grape King Bio conducted or sponsored animal experiments involved the mutilation and killing of at least 1,333 animals, intended to support human health claims for marketing probiotics, reishi mushrooms, goji berries, as well as products and ingredients others for consumers. These include force-feeding the rats, forcing the rats to inhale allergens and chemical vapors, and the animals starving to death. All animals were slaughtered and dissected.

PETA Vice President Shalin Gala said: “No animal should be forced to eat, get sick and be killed in cruel and unreliable tests. “Grape King Bio’s decision to ban animal testing will help PETA convince other major food companies to adopt more efficient, ethical and economical animal-free testing.”

PETA is also working to eliminate Taiwanese government requirements for animal testing. The Taiwan Food and Drug Administration (TFDA) has approved two groundbreaking reforms: First, Eliminates horrifying drowning and electric shock tests on animals from its regulation regarding companies trying to make anti-fatigue health claims to market their products. Second, it updated food safety testing regulations, will now prioritize “internationally recognized non-animal testing methods”. It was also removed all animal tests from draft regulations for blood pressure health claims after receiving the scientific opinions of PETA, PETA and more than 96,000 supporters keep calling for TFDA to ban animal testing for a separate general health statement for the marketing of food and beverages.

PETA and KiTA have successfully persuaded major food companies in Taiwan – Asia’s largest food and beverage group, Uni-President Enterprises Corp.; Taiwan’s largest health food company, Standard food group; a leading beverage manufacturer and bottling partner of the Coca-Cola Company, Swire Coca-Cola Taiwan; and other—To end animal experiments that are not required by law. The groups appeal to other companies, including Nestlé licensees AGV Products Corp.follow.

PETA — in part, their motto that “animals are not our thing to experiment with” — advocates speciesism, a human worldview – supremacy. For more information on PETA’s news collection, please visit PETA.org or follow the group on Twitter, Facebookor Instagram.