Most of the world’s farmed animals are in Asia

13 August 2026

Almost none of the funding is. Why?

By the ACTAsia team · Reviewed by our programme staff · Updated 15 June 2026. The figures below are drawn from independent research into animal-advocacy funding, cited throughout.

Farm animal welfare is severely underfunded in Asia. The region holds most of the world’s farmed animals, yet only around 8% of farm-animal advocacy funding is spent there (Faunalytics). By one estimate, up to 140 times more advocacy money is spent per animal in North America and Europe than in Southeast Asia and China. Because costs are lower in Asia, this gap is also a major missed opportunity.

The mismatch at the heart of the problem

Start with a simple pairing of facts. Asia is home to roughly 75% of the world’s farmed animals. And it receives only about 8% of the money spent on farm-animal advocacy worldwide (Faunalytics, 2025). Almost everywhere else, funding follows need. Here, it does the opposite. The place with the most animals gets the least help.

The scale of that gap is hard to overstate. One analysis found that up to 140 times more advocacy money is spent per animal in North America and Europe than in Southeast Asia and China (Founders Pledge). That is not a rounding difference. It is a structural blind spot in how the world funds animal welfare.

Farm animals are neglected everywhere, and most of all in Asia

The Asia gap sits inside a bigger one. Farm animals are among the most neglected causes in all of philanthropy. Globally, giving to reduce farm-animal suffering is estimated at roughly $260 million a year, which is about 0.04% of all philanthropy, over 100 times less than causes like climate change or global development (Stanford Social Innovation Review, 2025).

Within animal giving specifically, the imbalance is just as stark. Around 95% of animal-charity donations go to cats, dogs and other companion animals, and only about 3% to farm animals (Animal Charity Evaluators), even though farm animals vastly outnumber pets. Asia sits at the very bottom of this stack: a neglected region within a neglected cause.

The gap, in numbers

Why the money has not followed the animals

Several honest reasons explain the gap, and none of them is that the work does not matter.

Distance and familiarity. Most large animal-welfare funders are based in the West, and giving tends to flow to causes and organisations that feel close and familiar.

Fewer established groups. The advocacy movement in Asia is younger, so there have historically been fewer large organisations for funders to give to.

Grant barriers. Researchers note that many Asian NGOs lack the staff and time for complex Western grant applications and reporting, which quietly locks them out of funds (Faunalytics). About 80% of surveyed Asian NGOs said funding was their single greatest need.

Lower visibility. Public awareness of farm-animal issues is still growing in many Asian countries, which keeps the cause off the philanthropic radar.

Why this gap is also an opportunity

Here is the hopeful part. Because the cost of living and of running programmes is lower across much of Asia, money given there can achieve more. The same grant that funds a modest project in the West can support a far larger one in Asia. ACTAsia’s own analysis finds a pound or dollar goes around three times as far in Asia as in the West (Grant C., 2024). Underfunding plus low costs equals an unusually high return on each pound or dollar given.

Major funders have started to notice. Open Philanthropy, the largest funder of farm-animal advocacy, has explicitly shifted resources toward the Global South, backing corporate and producer work in countries such as Thailand and Indonesia. The direction of travel is right. The gap is still very wide.

Where ACTAsia fits

ACTAsia is one of the organisations working to close this gap, as an Asian-founded, Asian-led charity focused on the region the funding forgot. Rather than treating symptoms, it uses education to reduce demand and raise standards, and it does so where the animals actually are. Its Plant Forward campaign grew from four partner organisations in 2022 to 91 by 2025 and saw 78% of participants pledge to eat more plant-based food (ACTAsia CCN and Plant Forward Impact Report, 2021 to 2025).

Frequently asked questions

How much farm animal welfare funding goes to Asia?

Only around 8% of global farm-animal advocacy funding is spent in Asia (Faunalytics), despite the region holding roughly 75% of the world’s farmed animals. By one estimate, up to 140 times more is spent per animal in North America and Europe than in Southeast Asia and China.

Why is farm animal welfare so underfunded?

Globally, farm-animal giving is about $260 million a year, roughly 0.04% of all philanthropy (SSIR). Around 95% of animal-charity donations go to companion animals and only about 3% to farm animals (ACE), even though farm animals vastly outnumber pets.

Why does so little funding reach Asian organisations?

Reasons include the Western base of most funders, a younger advocacy movement with fewer large groups, complex grant processes that smaller Asian NGOs struggle to navigate, and still-growing public awareness. About 80% of surveyed Asian NGOs said funding was their greatest need.

Is giving to farm animal welfare in Asia cost-effective?

Yes. Lower costs across much of Asia mean each pound or dollar can achieve more than in the West. ACTAsia’s analysis finds giving goes around three times as far in Asia (Grant C., 2024), so the funding gap is also a high-return opportunity for donors.

Are funders starting to invest more in Asia?

Yes, though slowly. Open Philanthropy, the largest funder of farm-animal advocacy, has shifted resources toward the Global South, funding work in countries such as Thailand and Indonesia. The trend is positive, but the overall funding gap remains very large.

Education is urgent, and behaviour is learnt. The animals with the least help are in Asia, and that is exactly where a gift does the most. Help close the funding gap