The Monkey Farm is Cited for Death of Monkeys

USDA cites Alpha Genesis for monkey deaths, but monkey farm CEO demands FBI investigation

• 22 monkeys died at the Alpha Genesis Primate Research Center in November 2024 due to carbon monoxide poisoning from a diesel heater.

• The USDA cited Alpha Genesis for the incident, but the company claims to have taken corrective action.

• Alpha Genesis CEO Dr. Greg Westergaard has refuted PETA's claims and called for an FBI investigation, alleging potential foul play.

The Alpha Genesis Primate Research Center in lower South Carolina has been cited for the November 2024 deaths of 22 scientific research monkeys under its care, but the CEO of the sites locally referred to as the "Yemassee monkey farm" is suggesting foul play and demanding an FBI investigation.

On the night of Nov. 22, 2024, an incident involving a diesel-powered heater resulted in the death of multiple cynomolgus monkeys, also known as crab-eating macaques, at the Alpha Genesis site located at 95 Castle Hall Road, Yemassee, in Beaufort County, states a USDA report.

The Dec. 12, 2024 USDA report, released after a routine inspection conducted Dec. 9, described the situation as "critical" but credited the facility staff for its response: "Due to the quick actions of the facility employees, 32 of the 54 impacted cynomolgus monkeys survived the event."

The report added that, "Necropsy and histopathology findings on the animals that did not survive were consistent with exposure to CO gas," or carbon monoxide gas.

monkey farm CEO demands FBI investigation

Firing back-and-forth continues between PETA and Alpha Genesis Primate Research Center.

The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) report added that Alpha Genesis has since taken corrective action. APHIS is the federal agency tasked with animal welfare inspections and corrections.

To view the USDA report in full, as well as reports from previous USDA inspections of Alpha Genesis, go to: https://aphis.my.site.com/PublicSearchTool/s/inspection-reports

While the deaths were first publicly exposed by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), which has since issued a 270-page animal cruelty and neglect complaint to the USDA along with several scathing public statements, Alpha Genesis CEO Dr. Greg Westergaard has alleged possible tampering and foul play could have resulted in the heater malfunction.

Westergaard confirmed to The Hampton County Guardian Tuesday that he has contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation to investigate the matter.

Heater deaths a fiery topic: PETA responds to USDA report, Alpha Genesis CEO fires back

The November deaths were first made public after a "whistleblower" inside the Alpha Genesis circle came forward to PETA, the international rights group recently released in a public statement.

In its most recent statement, PETA addressed the USDA'S confirmation of these deaths in its Dec. 12 report:

"Time and again, Alpha Genesis has shown that the monkeys they imprison aren’t safe, and now the U.S. Department of Agriculture has cited Alpha Genesis for a critical violation of the federal Animal Welfare Act for the inexcusable suffocation deaths of 22 long-tailed macaques from carbon monoxide poisoning," states PETA Senior Vice President Kathy Guillermo. "PETA filed a complaint with the agency after hearing from whistleblowers. Despite receiving $19 million in contracts from the National Institutes of Health, Alpha Genesis has repeatedly failed to meet even the most basic animal welfare standards. Federal agencies should be prohibited from throwing taxpayer dollars at a facility with a documented history of negligence, cruelty, and deceit."

A PETA spokesperson also called the incident "a serious infraction that directly impacts the health, safety, or well-being of animals covered under the law. These violations typically involve severe neglect, inadequate veterinary care, inhumane handling, or failure to provide food, water, and shelter.”

In response to PETA's statements, Alpha Genesis CEO Dr. Westergaard released to the media his second profanity-infused statement in less than a week.

"Alpha Genesis respects the findings of the most recent USDA inspection report dated 12/12/2024. We do not respect the incendiary garbage put out this afternoon by PETA. In closing, PETA can again go (expletive) themselves."

The latest monkey farm situation has escalated after a reported group of 43 young female Rhesus monkeys escaped from the Castle Hall Road primate breeding facility in early November.

When Westergaard announced Jan. 24 that the last of the runaway monkeys had been recaptured safely and in healthy condition despite recent snow storms and below-freezing weather, PETA issued a statement doubting the Alpha Genesis claim and demanding public proof.