Novartis pulls Savlon from shelves in animal rights scare

Novartis' antiseptic cream Savlon has been pulled from shelves in the UK following claims by animal rights' activists that they have contaminated the product with bleach.

A group claiming to be the Animal Rights Militia posted a message on the animal rights website Bite Back, claiming it had tampered with over 250 tubes and bottles of Savlon over the last five days in northern England branches of Boots, Superdrug and other stockists.

"The side effects and the inevitable hospital stay will give people an idea of what Novartis pays for inside Huntingdon Life Sciences (HLS)," the animal rights group claimed.

In a statement, Novartis said: "Working with retailers, Savlon has been removed from shelves as a precautionary measure. We have not found any evidence that Savlon has been tampered with but consumer safety is paramount."

The Animal Rights Militia also claimed that it tampered with 85 bottles of Novartis' Solo Care Aqua contact lens solution across France.

It said bottles were infected with hydrogen peroxide that was injected with a small needle.

HLS is a contract animal-testing company that conducts safety tests for the pharmaceutical and other industries.