BBC Inside Science - Could technology replace animal testing in science?

Download Could technology replace animal testing in science?

This week the UK government set out its vision for a world where the use of animals in science is eliminated in all but exceptional circumstances. Animal experiments in the UK peaked at 4.14 million in 2015 driven mainly by a big increase at the time in genetic modification experiments. By 2020, the number had fallen sharply to 2.88 million as alternative methods and technologies were developed. But since then that decline has plateaued.

Could we see the end of animals being used in science labs? Presenter Tom Whipple is joined by Dr. Chris Powell, Director of Cambridge BioPharma Consultants Ltd. and honorary visiting scientist at Cambridge University and Dr. Natalie Burden, head of New Approach Methodologies at the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs).

And as world leaders gather for the COP30 climate conference in Brazil, we speak to glaciologist Dr. Matthias Huss. In the past decade, his data has shown that a quarter of Swiss ice has been lost, with hundreds of glaciers having disappeared entirely. But part of one of those glaciers remains in the freezer of his basement...

Also Penny Sarchet, managing editor at New Scientist, brings us her take on the new science that matters this week.

To discover more fascinating science content, head to bbc.co.uk, search for BBC Inside Science and follow the links to The Open University.

Presenter: Tom Whipple
Producers: Clare Salisbury, Tim Dodd, Alex Mansfield, Jonathan Blackwell
Editor: Martin Smith
Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth

Published on Thursday, 13th November 2025.

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