Indonesia is reviving its role in the international trade of long-tailed macaques, reopening a controversial debate over biomedical research, animal welfare and the conservation of a species now classified as Endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
The Indonesian government has established a new breeding facility in Lampung and set a 2026 export quota of 1,920 long-tailed macaques, marking the first recorded quota for the species since 2022, according to Channel NewsAsia’s reporting based on CITES records.
The move is being defended by Indonesian officials as a tightly regulated effort that could generate economic opportunities, supply animals for biomedical research and help address growing conflicts between macaques and communities.
But animal-welfare organisations are pushing back, warning that restarting the trade could expose thousands of animals to capture, confinement, transport and laboratory testing — and could create new pressure on wild populations.
A NEW FACILITY IN LAMPUNG
At the centre of Indonesia’s renewed push is a breeding facility operated by PT Bio Medika Nusantara Indah (BMNI) in Mesuji Regency, Lampung.
The facility officially opened on July 31 and occupies about 4.9 hectares within a 50-hectare site. It has the capacity to house as many as 4,000 macaques.
According to BMNI director Reki Chandra, the facility currently holds 804 macaques captured in Mesuji, Tulang Bawang and West Tulang Bawang. These animals are being used as breeding stock, while their first-generation offspring — known as F1 animals — are intended for export for research.
Indonesian authorities say the animals cannot simply be captured and shipped overseas.
Barantin chief Abdul Kadir Karding said macaques intended for export must spend roughly two years at the breeding facility, undergo health checks and remain subject to oversight from several government bodies. BRIN, Indonesia’s National Research and Innovation Agency, provides recommendations on export numbers, while the Ministry of Forestry determines which species may be bred.
Indonesian officials have also stressed that the programme is intended to involve regulated breeding rather than unrestricted wildlife capture.
THE MONEY BEHIND THE TRADE
There is a major commercial incentive.
BMNI expects the Lampung facility eventually to export roughly 1,000 macaques annually, with each animal potentially selling for between US$3,000 and US$4,000, depending on its characteristics and quality.
Indonesian quarantine officials have identified the United States as the main current destination, while China is being discussed as another potential market.
Karding told Antara that potential demand could be around 20,000 macaques annually in China and about 10,000 in the United States. Those figures represent potential market demand, however, not confirmed Indonesian orders or exports.
That distinction matters: Indonesia’s current CITES quota is far below those claimed potential demand figures.
WHY ARE MACAQUES NEEDED FOR RESEARCH?
Long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) have become an important species in biomedical research because of similarities to humans in genetics, anatomy and biological processes.
A 2023 review cited by CNA found that long-tailed macaques have become the most widely used non-human primates in toxicity testing over recent decades. Researchers say controlled breeding can also provide animals with known health histories and genetic backgrounds, which can reduce variables that could affect research results.
The scientific case, however, exists alongside a broader international push to reduce and eventually replace the use of animals in some areas of research.
That tension is at the heart of the current controversy.
WHY CONSERVATIONISTS ARE ALARMED
The long-tailed macaque is listed under CITES Appendix II, meaning international trade is subject to controls.
Indonesia’s own conservation assessment has classified the species as “least concern,” and Indonesian authorities say some populations are stable or locally abundant.
The international picture is more worrying.
CNA reports that the IUCN now classifies the long-tailed macaque as Endangered, citing habitat loss, hunting and capture from the wild. The assessment estimates that the global population has fallen by roughly 40% over the past four decades and could decline by another 50% over the next four decades if current pressures continue.
Indonesia says its national surveys estimated nearly 49,000 macaques across surveyed locations between 2019 and 2024, with large numbers recorded in South Sumatra, Lampung and Jambi. But survey numbers in particular areas do not automatically demonstrate that the species is secure across its entire range.
THE BIGGEST QUESTION: WHERE DO THE BREEDING ANIMALS COME FROM?
This is where the controversy becomes especially sensitive.
Animal-welfare groups have questioned the sourcing of macaques used as breeding stock at the Lampung facility.
CNA reported that BMNI’s director had been quoted by local media as saying residents could sell wild macaques to the facility for around 200,000 rupiah per animal.
The animal-welfare coalition Action for Primates, Jakarta Animal Aid Network and other groups argued that such a system could create a risk of wild-caught animals being channelled into commercial breeding operations.
Mesuji Regent Elfianah Khamamik disputed the characterisation that residents were simply selling monkeys, saying payments were instead a “token of appreciation” for people handing over wild animals.
She also said some residents had received training to capture macaques regarded as nuisance animals.
The distinction is crucial because Indonesia has long regulated the capture and trade of these animals, and CITES documentation has historically raised concerns about the sourcing and enforcement of macaque breeding operations. A CITES document has also noted historical restrictions on wild-sourced exports from Indonesia and concerns over enforcement and captive-breeding practices.
HUMAN-MACAQUE CONFLICT IS ADDING PRESSURE
Indonesian officials and local residents say there is another side to the story: human-wildlife conflict.
CNA reported that macaque attacks injured 19 people in Tembilahan, Riau, between late July and early August.
Farmers in several areas have also complained about macaques raiding crops.
But researchers caution that these conflicts cannot simply be explained by the animals being “too numerous.” Habitat changes, human activity near macaque territory, access to agricultural food and people feeding wild animals can all influence conflict.
Some Indonesian residents have reportedly resorted to killing macaques that damage crops.
Supporters of the breeding programme argue that capturing conflict animals and moving them into regulated facilities could prevent further violence against both people and animals.
Critics counter that conflict should be addressed through stronger coexistence and habitat-management strategies rather than creating a commercial incentive around wildlife.
ANIMAL-WELFARE GROUPS WANT THE EXPORTS STOPPED
The backlash has already become international.
Lady Freethinker, Action for Primates, Jakarta Animal Aid Network and other groups have called on Indonesia to suspend the renewed export programme.
A petition launched after the Lampung facility opened had collected more than 37,000 signatures by Aug. 15, according to CNA.
Action for Primates said in August that Indonesia’s renewed quota represented a resurgence in exports for laboratory use and called for stronger legal protection, an end to the capture of wild macaques for commercial breeding and greater investment in human-macaque coexistence strategies.
The groups also argue that the scientific world is increasingly developing alternatives to animal testing, including in-vitro systems, organ-on-chip technologies and computational modelling.
Scientists supporting continued macaque research, meanwhile, argue that the animals remain important for certain biomedical studies and that the priority should be strict regulation, responsible breeding and animal-welfare safeguards rather than an immediate end to their use.
INDONESIA’S GAMBLE
Indonesia is therefore walking a difficult line.
On one side is a potentially lucrative international research market, local employment, regulated breeding and a possible mechanism for dealing with macaques involved in human-wildlife conflict.
On the other is a species whose global conservation status has deteriorated, alongside longstanding concerns over wildlife capture, trade and the welfare of animals used in laboratory research.
The government insists the system is controlled.
Animal-welfare groups fear the renewed trade could expand faster than oversight can keep up.
And the most consequential question may not be how many macaques Indonesia is allowed to export in 2026.
It may be whether the country can prove that its growing commercial breeding industry is genuinely reducing pressure on wild populations — rather than creating a new pathway for wild animals to enter the global laboratory trade.
For Indonesia, the next phase of the programme could determine whether the macaque becomes a model of tightly regulated conservation-linked research — or the centre of a much larger international fight over wildlife, science and animal welfare.
Leave a Reply