Press Releases

Washington, DC—In the wake of Netflix docuseries “Tiger King” and heightened public attention to the exploitation of captive big cats, 53 bipartisan members of Congress sent a letter yesterday to the U.S. Department of Agriculture...

Washington, DC—Lobbyists and executives for Mystic Aquarium and Georgia Aquarium used back-door politics to try to win approval for a controversial permit application to import five captive-born beluga whales from Marineland in Canada, an Animal...

Washington, DC—In a strong bipartisan showing, more than 60 members of Congress sent a letter this week to the World Health Organization, the World Organisation for Animal Health, and the Food and Agriculture Organization of...

Washington, DC—An analysis by the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) has found that the majority of states have gotten off to a slow start reporting animal cruelty incidents to the FBI’s national crime database. In 2015...

Washington, DC—Today, the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) sent a letter to the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association urging the world’s largest poultry organization to immediately implement fire prevention strategies to stop devastating barn fires that...

Dear Members and other friends of AWI: As you know, coronavirus (COVID-19) is spreading around the globe, and the human species is facing a pandemic unlike any the vast majority of us have endured in...

Washington, DC—The US National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announced today that it will ban imports of Mexican shrimp and other seafood caught in the habitat of the critically endangered vaquita porpoise. The action is being...

Honolulu, HI—Following the recent deaths of 21 pregnant cows on a barge traveling from Oahu to Kauai, the Hawaii Department of Agriculture (HDOA) formally committed last week to adopting regulations to better protect farm animals...

Rochester, NY—Animal protection groups sued Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue and the Department of Agriculture today for failing to protect pigs who are too sick or injured to walk at slaughterhouses, posing serious risks to...

Washington, DC—The US House Subcommittee on Health of the Committee on Energy and Commerce held a hearing today on “Improving Safety and Transparency in America’s Food and Drugs.” Included on the agenda was the Safeguard...

We at AWI, like so many people around the world, are deeply concerned about the impacts of the wildfires raging in Australia. The loss of life, both animal and human, is devastating. With the estimate—considered...

Washington, DC—Following the release of an updated food labeling guidance document today, the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) is appalled that the US Department of Agriculture continues to permit producers to mislead the public with confusing...

Washington, DC—The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) commends the US House of Representatives and Senate Appropriations Committees for including monumental victories for animal welfare in the final Fiscal Year 2020 spending package. As a result, we...

Washington, DC—At least 469,000 farm animals have perished in potentially preventable barn fires so far this year, according to an Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) analysis of media reports. Since 2017, at least 2 million farm...

Washington, DC—The Trump administration announced today it will reauthorize the use of sodium cyanide in wildlife-killing devices called M-44s, rejecting overwhelming public support for a nationwide ban. These “cyanide bombs” have received approval—with minimal restrictions—from...

The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) is looking forward to Giving Tuesday—a global day of giving. Giving Tuesday (December 3 this year) is a perfect opportunity during the holiday season to contribute toward a better world...

Washington, DC—The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) applauds the US House of Representatives for passing the bipartisan Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act (H.R. 737) today. The bill would prohibit the sale, purchase, and possession of shark...

Washington, DC—The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) commends House Appropriations Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) for reintroducing the Refuge from Cruel Trapping Act today. This bill would prohibit the possession or use of body-gripping traps—which endanger wildlife...

Washington, DC—The Taiwanese government must act quickly to ban gill and trammel nets and stop development from further degrading the habitat of the critically endangered Taiwanese white dolphin, according to a new recovery plan drafted...

Washington, DC—The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) and a coalition of environmental and animal protection organizations strongly oppose Mystic Aquarium’s unprecedented request to import five captive-born beluga whales from Canada for scientific research. The whales would...