Japanese Beer Giant Kirin Ends Animal Testing

Raise a glass to Kirin. The Japanese beer company is halting animal testing.

Kirin Holdings Co., Ltd., the second-largest alcoholic-beverage manufacturer in Japan, “has agreed to end all experiments on animals not required by law,” PETA reported.

“Since 2015, Kirin had funded numerous experiments on animals, resulting in the deaths of at least 365 mice and 34 rats,” PETA continued.

“Experimenters force-fed mice fermented milk and injected a chemical into their brains that induces inflammation, force-fed them probiotics and injected a type of flu virus up their noses, and force-fed them a high-fat diet—supplemented for some with hop extracts—before draining their blood and breaking their necks.”

Experiments also resulted in experimenters starving rats, force-feeding rats hop extracts, and inserting electrodes into rats’ abdomens. “At the experiments’ end, the animals were all killed and dissected,” PETA reported.

“Kirin did the right thing in ditching cruel and wasteful animal experiments,” Shalin Gala, PETA vice president, said. “This step forward means that virtually the entire Japanese alcohol market has now ended animal testing after discussions with PETA, and we’re raising a bottle to say, ‘Cheers,’ to that.”

Kirin is now one of the many Japanese alcoholic beverage companies that have banned animal testing that is not required by law. Other Japanese companies who have halted testing include Asahi Group Holdings, Ltd., Suntory Holdings, Ltd., and Sapporo Holdings Ltd.

And according to PETA, “other major alcohol industry players – including the Molson Coors Brewing Company, Bacardi & Company, Inc., Brown-Forman Corporation, Constellation Brands, and Heineken N.V., and E. & J. Gallo Winery – and numerous food and beverage makers have followed suit.”

In recent months, breweries around the world have launched vegan beers.

Last month the Shoreditch-based Long Arm pub and brewery announced it would soon serve a vegan avocado craft beer, named the Millennial Stout on tap. The beer became available at the Worship Street location on November 5th, to coincide with World Vegan Month.

“Though the drink may not replicate avocados’ vivid green colour, according to the Evening Standard, the Long Arm says that dark malts are combined with the fruit just after secondary fermentation, giving the drink a ‘subtle creamy avocado flavour and aroma,’” LIVEKINDLY reported in October.

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