Sinergia Animal

Sinergia Animal is an international animal welfare organization that campaigns for the welfare of farm animals in developing and emerging countries. With a focus on South America and Southeast Asia, the organization works to improve the living conditions of animals in industrial agriculture. Through intensive campaigns and cooperation with companies as well as consumer education, Sinergia Animal is committed to effective and sustainable change in countries where animal welfare has not previously been a high priority in order to improve standards in factory farming, reduce the consumption of animal products and increase the supply of animal-free products.

The problem

In many countries of the Global South, millions of animals live and suffer under extremely poor conditions in industrial agriculture. Chickens that are kept in cages, pigs that live in cramped crates and cows that have hardly any freedom of movement are often exposed to extreme stress and pain. Despite the great suffering, there are no or only minimal animal welfare laws in many of these countries. The demand for animal products is increasing and without targeted changes, the cruel practices of factory farming will continue to increase.

In the countries where Sinergia Animal operates, there are still over 800 million laying hens. And in Brazil, where Sinergia is implementing a program to improve pig farming, over 40 million pigs are kept in extremely poor conditions. All these animals in factory farming suffer greatly. ^[1]

The solution

Sinergia Animal pursues a multi-pronged approach to reduce the suffering of farm animals in industrial agriculture:

1. Company cooperations: Sinergia Animal works with companies to encourage them to introduce higher animal welfare standards, such as the abolition of cages in egg production and the promotion of better housing conditions for pigs. These voluntary changes often work faster than legal requirements and reach a large number of animals quickly.

2. Campaigns and public relations: Sinergia Animal runs public campaigns to raise consumer awareness of the abuses in industrial agriculture. The aim is to bring about a change in consumer behavior by educating people about animal suffering and to increase demand for more animal-friendly products or plant-based alternatives.

3. Promotion of plant-based alternatives: To reduce the demand for animal products, Sinergia Animal promotes plant-based alternatives and works to raise awareness of the ethical, health and environmental benefits of a plant-based diet.

The impact

Sinergia Animal has already made significant progress in several countries through its work. The organization has been able to convince numerous companies to switch to more animal-friendly practices such as cage-free housing for laying hens. Sinergia Animal has also raised awareness of the need for animal welfare standards among the public and political decision-makers. The organization’s work is reflected in an increasing number of companies committing to better husbandry conditions and a growing interest in plant-based alternatives in the target countries.

Following a year-long campaign by Sinergia, the Zen Group restaurant chain, for example, has announced that it will be offering eggs from cage-free hens in more than 300 outlets in Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, the Philippines and Japan.

Since Sinergia Animal was founded in 2017, it has secured more than 190 such commitments worldwide, replaced nearly 4 million animal-based meals with plant-based alternatives, published more than 30 undercover investigations, and thereby reached a total of 113 million animals annually. ^[2]

The organization

Sinergia Animal was founded in 2017 and has since established itself as one of the most influential animal welfare organizations in emerging markets. The organization is headquartered in Austria and is active in several South American (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Colombia, Peru) and Southeast Asian (Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand) countries, and works to improve the living conditions of farm animals through targeted campaigns and close collaboration with local partners.

Since 2018, Sinergia Animal has been recommended by Animal Charity Evaluators (ACE) as a particularly effective organization in the field of animal welfare. ACE particularly highlights the organization’s high level of transparency and its strategic approach, which allows it to achieve a significant impact with relatively few resources. ACE estimates that every dollar donated to Sinergia Animal helps 53 animals.

By donating to Sinergia Animal, you’re supporting an organization that works to improve the living conditions of farm animals in countries where conditions are particularly poor. Your help contributes to funding corporate partnerships and public outreach, raising animal welfare standards, and promoting demand for plant-based alternatives in emerging markets.