Twenty years ago today, Animals Asia founder Jill Robinson joined a scenic bus tour that would turn her life around – and lead to greater understanding of animal welfare in China and Vietnam. Jill was working undercover in southern China to investigate an unsettling report – that the bus stopped at a farm selling medicinal bear bile that was extracted from bears crammed into tiny cages. 

What she saw that day on 17 April 1993 would stay with her forever. Slipping away while the farmers were busy selling “fresh bear bile” to passengers, Jill crept down some stone steps that led to a gloomy basement. She could hear shuffling and a strange popping sound. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, a horror scene emerged. 

Cage after cage crammed with pitiful bears unable to stand or turn around. Some were swaying their heads, some were vocalising – pop, pop, pop – indicating severe stress in moon bears. When one of the bears reached out through the cage bars, Jill instinctively reached out too, taking the huge paw in her hands. At that moment she knew she had a choice, and she chose to act. Jill named this bear Hong and vowed to do all she could to end the barbaric bear bile industry. Read Jill’s Blog looking back on that day. 

Jill began her tireless work in China, resolutely building relationships and negotiating with government departments to bring an end to this cruel practice. She discovered that bear bile could be replaced by cheaper and equally effective herbs and synthetics – and began working with traditional medicine doctors and Western doctors in China and globally to promote the alternatives. 

In 1995, the Guangdong Ministry of Forestry closed down a second farm that Jill exposed, and in 1996 after surgery and rehabilitation, the nine bears from this farm were transferred to a sanctuary in Panyu, southern China. This was run by the International Fund for Animal Welfare where Jill and other current members of the Animals Asia team then worked. 

Today, four of these bears survive and are safe, content and free, having being moved to our China Bear Rescue Centre in Chengdu in 2009 because our facilities better catered to geriatric bears. 

Sadly, Jill’s attempts to rescue Hong and the 31 other bears on the first bear bile farm she visited fell flat when she was told the farm had moved away and no one knew where. Read Jill’s letter to Hong. 

Throughout 1997 and 1998, intensive negotiations with the Chinese authorities progressed, and on 8 August 1998, Jill and a small group of friends launched Animals Asia with the mission of ending bear bile farming.