Charles River Laboratories International, Inc., is an American pharmaceutical company specializing in a variety of preclinical and clinical laboratory, gene therapy and cell therapy services for the Pharmaceutical, Medical device and Biotechnology industries. It also supplies assorted biomedical products, outsourcing services, and animals for research and development in the pharmaceutical industry (for example, contract research organization services) and offer support in the fields of basic research, drug discovery, safety and efficacy, clinical support, and manufacturing. The company's broad portfolio allowed them to support the development of approximately 85% of FDA-approved drugs in 2018. Its customers include leading pharmaceutical, biotechnology, agrochemical, government, and academic organization around the globe. The company has over 90 facilities, operates in 20 countries, and employs approximately 18,400 people worldwide. Charles River Laboratories is often criticized by animal rights activists who condemn the company's usage of dogs and other primates for pharmaceutical purposes. History Charles River was founded in 1947 by Henry Foster, a young veterinarian who purchased one thousand rat cages from a Virginia farm and set up a one-man laboratory in Boston, overlooking the Charles River. In an effort to fulfil the regional need for laboratory animal models, he bred, fed, and cared for the animals and personally delivered them to local researchers. In 1955, the company's headquarters were relocated to their current home in Wilmington, Massachusetts. The organization became an international entity in 1966 with the opening of a new animal production facility in France. The first commercial, comprehensive genetic monitoring program was implemented by Charles River in 1981. Three years later, they were acquired by Bausch & Lomb. During this time, Henry and Jim Foster are still in charge of the company. In 1988, the organization started to expand their portfolio to include the creation of transgenic mice and rats. In the 1990s, Charles River expanded their portfolio further. They purchased Specific Pathogen Antigen Free Avian Services (SPAFAS) and serologic diagnostic services Merck, Sharp, and Dohme in 1992 and started offering in vitro endotoxin testing two years later. Between 1996 and 2000, the company acquired Endosafe, Inc., was bought back from Bausch & Lomb by Jim Foster, acquired Sierra Biomedical, expanded its portfolio to offer biopharmaceutical services, and went public on the New York Stock Exchange. Charles River launched the Humane Care Imperative in 2002, designed to raise awareness and train their employees on the importance of animal welfare. The same year, they