'Global meltdown' caused by China 'running out of lab monkeys to test on'

Tom McGhieSun, September 20, 2026 at 9:00 AM UTC

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China is experiencing a critical shortage of laboratory monkeys for testing purposes (Image: NurPhoto via Getty Images)

China is experiencing a critical shortage of laboratory monkeys for testing purposes amid surging demand from pharmaceutical companies - creating substantial challenges throughout the industry.

The nation's breeding facilities are unable to meet demand for non-human primates from major biotech firms, according to reports. Consequently, Beijing's thriving clinical development pipeline has nearly come to a complete standstill.

In July, the price of a single macaque on the Chinese market soared to an eye-watering $28,200, roughly double what it cost last year.

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This shortage stems from the fact that every new drug must undergo extensive animal testing before reaching human volunteers, Chinese contract research firm Joinn Laboratories stated earlier this month.

"In the medium to long-term, the home-developed drugs will account for more share in China's pipeline of innovative drugs for overseas markets, further increasing the demand for macaques," said Chinese analyst firm Orient Securities in a statement, reports the Daily Star.

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The nation's breeding facilities are unable to meet demand for non-human primates from major biotech firms (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

Despite advances in AI, numerous companies have indicated that using primates to evaluate certain medications remains the most effective method for testing efficacy.

Mice aren't viable substitutes either - for obvious reasons, researchers gain far more relevant information about drugs intended for human use by testing them on primates rather than rodents.

And this severe bottleneck isn't confined to China alone. When Chinese contract research organizations encounter 'monkey shortages', development timelines extend globally, triggering something of a crisis.

In July, the price of a single macaque on the Chinese market soared to an eye-watering $28,200 (Image: undefined)

As expenses rise, smaller biotech firms are frequently priced out of the market entirely, leaving only financially powerful conglomerates capable of securing testing slots.

In January, US pharmaceutical giant Charles River proposed acquiring K.F. (Cambodia), one of its monkey suppliers, for nearly £5million in order to safeguard its non-human primate supply chain.

More recently, WuXi AppTec - another major Chinese biotech corporation - acquired a Suzhou-based company for approximately 804 million yuan ($119.7 million), with one of its newly acquired entities holding around 20,000 macaques.

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Source: “AOL Money”