Ending the bear bile industry | World Animal Protection Skip to main content
Français
Home
DONATE
  • Home
  • About us
  • Our work
    • Animals in disasters
    • Animals in farming
    • Animals in the wild
    • Reports library
  • News
    • Impact for animals
    • Media centre
    • Publications
  • Education
    • Animal facts
    • Animal quizzes
    • Kids activities
    • Animal welfare education
  • Ways to give
    • One-time donation
    • Monthly donation
    • Active fundraising campaigns
    • Corporate partnerships
    • Legacy gifts and securities
    • BMO World Animal Protection Mastercard
    • Workplace giving
      • Companies with matching gift programs
    • Send an eCard
    • ECHOAGE birthdays
    • Donate a vehicle
  • Take action
Ending the bear bile industry

The bear bile industry causes intense, unjustified suffering to bears across Asia — and you help us put a stop to it.

Learn more
  1. Home ›
  2. Ending the bear bile industry
Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram

Ending the bear bile industry

The problem

Across Asia, over 20,000 bears are kept in captivity for their bile, which is extracted using cruel, painful procedures and sold as traditional medicine. These captive bears suffer in filthy and cramped conditions, often in cages no bigger than phone booths.

But the bear bile industry is completely unnecessary — plentiful and inexpensive synthetic and herbal alternatives to bear bile are readily available.

What we're doing

  • Joining with partners, including governments, global bodies, local partners and individuals, to stop bears being exploited and to create lasting change.
  • Promoting better welfare for captive bears, while we move to end the bear bile industry for good.
  • Seeking laws, policies, monitoring and enforcement to ensure that captive bears are given space to move, provided with richer environments and are protected from all forms of bile extraction and exploitation.
  • Raising awareness of alternatives to bear bile, including herbal and synthetic products, which are readily available, affordable and effective.
  • Working with local organizations to urge governments to live up to their international commitments to protect bears and other wild animals.
A bear used in the bile industry, South Korea (Green Korea United)
A bear used in the bile industry, South Korea (Photo: Green Korea United)

How you can help

  • Never purchase products made from bear bile or other wildlife parts.
  • Share this page with your friends and family, so they can learn about this issue.
  • Make a donation to support our work to end the bear bile industry.

Support our work to end the bear bile industry

With your support, we can stop bears being subjected to a lifetime of pain and distress in the bear bile industry.

Donate now

 



Changing the world, together — Latest campaign news and blogs:

After 13 years of pain and suffering in captivity, a group of Asiatic black bears have been rescued from the horrific abuse of bear bile farming.

 

Five Asiatic black bears have been rescued from the horrific abuse of bear bile farming

Bear rescue: we help save five bears from the cruel bear bile industry in Vietnam

27/08/2018

After 13 years of pain and suffering in captivity, a group of Asiatic black bears have been rescued from the horrific abuse of bear bile farming

Since 2005, World Animal Protection has been working with our partner Education for Nature (ENV) to end bear farming in Vietnam. We’re working with national and local governments to change and strengthen laws protecting bears and raising public awareness.

 

Bad \"medicine\" must end for good

Bad "medicine" must end for good

16/08/2018

Since 2005, World Animal Protection has been working with our partner Education for Nature (ENV) to end bear farming in Vietnam. We’re working with national...

We’re a huge step closer to ending the country’s bear bile industry, which involves painfully extracting bile from bears for use in traditional medicine.

 

bear bile vietnam

End in sight for cruel bear bile industry in Vietnam

01/09/2017

We’re a huge step closer to ending the country’s bear bile industry, which involves painfully extracting bile from bears for use in traditional medicine

Bear bile farming is one of the cruellest abuses of animals in the world and is of dubious medicinal value. Read our blog by Gilbert Sape, head of our bears and traditional medicine campaign.

 

Moonbear

Blog: Can we be the generation to end bear bile farming?

29/08/2017

Bear bile farming is one of the cruellest abuses of animals in the world and is of dubious medicinal value.

Countries that keep captive bears for traditional medicine must follow this positive example to end the captive breeding of bears for their bile.

 

Moonbears like this cub, pictured at the Endangered Species Preservation Centre in South Korea, are commonly used in Asia for their bile.

South Korea takes steps to end cruel bear bile industry, following our campaigning with local partners

27/04/2017

Countries that keep captive bears for traditional medicine must follow this positive example to end the captive breeding of bears for their bile

Together, we can create lasting change to prevent the severe pain and psychological distress suffered by bears in the bear bile industry.

Donate now

Tell the world

  • twitter
  • facebook
  • linkedin
  • email

Join our community

Sign up to our mailing list and connect with us on social media. Together we are moving the world to protect animals.

Sign up to our mailing list

Receive updates with our latest news, petitions, appeals and campaigns successes.

Sign up

Connect with us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Contact
  • Face to face fundraising
  • Jobs
  • Media centre
  • Privacy Policy
  • Supporter Centre
  • Tax receipts

© World Animal Protection
Tel: 416 369 0044 Email:
info@worldanimalprotection.ca.
Canadian Charitable Registration #12971 9076 RR0001
Land acknowledgement for our Toronto office.