Charles River gets DoJ subpoena on Cambodian supply of lab monkeys

(Reuters) -Charles River Laboratories said on Wednesday that it had received a subpoena from the U.S. Department of Justice over an investigation into the supply of non-human primates from Cambodia, which are a part of the animal research services that the company offers to drug developers.

Shares of the company were down 12.4% at $213.34.

The DoJ had in November charged members of an international primate smuggling ring with multiple felonies for their role in bringing wild long-tailed macaques into the United States.

Charles River expects constraints on the supply of monkeys to reduce its consolidated revenue growth forecast by about 200 to 400 basis points this year. The company on Wednesday forecast revenue growth of 1.5% to 4.5% for 2023.

Long-tailed macaques are protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and require special permits in order to be imported into the United States.

The company also said it had also voluntarily suspended shipments of non-human primates from Cambodia at this time.

In November last year, contract drug researcher Inotiv Inc disclosed that executives at its main supplier in Cambodia were charged with violations of U.S. endangered species law for illegally importing non-human primates.

Non-human primates are essential in animal models in biomedical research.

(Reporting by Sriparna Roy in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’Silva and Shailesh Kuber)