Sharks are Killed to Make Effective Vaccines. More May Die as Scientists Develop One for COVID-19 - USA Today

Thank you to USA Today, and journalist Adrianna Rodriguez, for sharing the #SharkFreeVaccine initiative with your readers! In this piece, you will hear from all sides, GSK, Shark Allies, sustainable squalene manufacturers Amyris and a doctor from the Infectious Disease Research Institute.

“‘The amount of squalene that will be needed to manufacture the intended 1 billion doses of its adjuvant system represents a very small proportion of the animal-derived squalene used worldwide – the vast majority of squalene produced is used by other industries including the cosmetic industry,’ GSK said in the statement. 

According to a study in 2012 by BLOOM, a nonprofit group that works to preserve marine life, about 90% of the world’s shark liver oil production feeds the needs of the cosmetics industry, which uses squalene – or its hydrogenated form, squalane – for its anti-inflammatory properties that reduce skin redness and swelling.

‘Pointing to someone worse doesn’t really relieve your burden of doing the right thing,’ Shark Allies' Brendl said. ‘The numbers are a little bit out of proportion, but we should change the thing we can change especially when it’s in our control.’”