On Monday (20 October), together with partner organisations, we handed over 300,000 signatures to Icelandic Minister Hanna Katrín Friðriksson. Our message is clear: Iceland must finally put an end to cruel blood farms. The Minister listened to us and thanked us for our work, but did not make any official commitment.

Together with our partner organization Dýraverndarsamband Íslands (DÍS) in Iceland, we have reported the serious animal welfare violations we found during our investigation in Iceland to the police. The Icelandic authorities must take action before the next blood season begins.

In autumn 2024, we conducted further investigations into the production of the fertility hormone PMSG from the blood of pregnant Icelandic mares. The mares are semi-wild and have little contact with humans other than for blood collection. Recent footage, obtained at six blood farms, shows that the horses endure immense stress and suffering during…

In summer 2023, we conduct further investigations into the production of the fertility hormone PMSG in Iceland. The new footage from two blood farms shows that the suffering of the blood mares continues. They are kicked, beaten and confined in injury-inducing restraint boxes. The mares are frightened or panic, they resist and try to escape.

The…

On this relatively small blood farm, blood is extracted today from 60 mares in three restraint boxes, which takes three hours in total. The mares are restrained in the boxes with a belt over their backs so that they cannot rear up. Their heads are pulled up by a rope and fixed to one side of the box. Then, a large-bore cannula is inserted into…

Video footage obtained on a large blood farm with six restraint boxes shows the everyday treatment of blood mares during blood extraction. The entire procedure, lasting three hours in total, is stressful for the semi-wild horses.

The mares and foals are herded from the pasture to the blood collection site with honking cars, shouting people and…

During ten days of investigation in Iceland, we find 40 blood farms out of around 100 farms where blood is taken from pregnant mares for the production of the fertility hormone PMSG. We detect numerous risks of injury to the mares at these facilities. Most raceways and restraint boxes have dangerous gaps where the mares can injure their legs, and…