Camp Beagle

The camp began on 27 June 2021 when approximately 50 people gathered for a protest, blocking the MBR Acres gate (including with cars) and camping overnight. The trigger was a 22 June Daily Mirror report about dogs at the facility; the Home Office contacted the Animals in Science Regulation Unit the next day, and an unannounced inspection followed on 28 June.

By 1 July 2021 the encampment became permanent. The camp operates a rotating-residence model: long-term residents, short-term visitors, daily pickets timed to worker shift changes, and round-the-clock gate monitoring. Camp Beagle describes its purpose as building sustained public pressure to close MBR Acres, including live broadcasts of every transport van arrival.

No single named founder appears in Camp Beagle's public materials. In court proceedings MBR Acres sued “Camp Beagle” as an unincorporated association, naming Bethany Mayflower as the litigation representative. Staffing numbers fluctuate; primary sources describe a variable group of long-term residents supplemented by regular visitors organized to maintain continuous presence.

MBR Acres Limited (Companies House no. 10742432) lists Mfg International Limited as its person with significant control; the PSC identity is protected. Directors include Cyril Desvignes and Andrew David Smith. The High Court confirmed that MBR Acres and B&K Universal Limited are subsidiaries of Marshall Farm Group Ltd, “trading as Marshall Bioresources.” This judicial characterization is the most direct primary-source tie linking MBR Acres to the US parent company.

Camp Beagle's “History” page claims Marshall breeds beagles in the US, France, China, Japan, and the UK. Marshall's own corporate website lists colonies in the US, UK, France, and China — notably omitting Japan.

Camp Beagle combines permanent physical presence with media amplification. Core tactics include:

• 24/7 gate monitoring — documenting every vehicle entering or leaving MBR Acres and livestreaming transport days.
• Daily shift pickets — timed to worker arrivals and departures.
• “Death Vans” campaign — publicly identifying Impex Couriers and framing beagle transport as a visible symbol of the breeding trade.
• Mass marches — the 28 Aug 2021 Smithfield Market march (organized with Animal Rebellion) drew ~500 people and disrupted roads in London; Sky News and Press Association covered it.
• Supply-chain investigations — the Copenhagen air-route exposé and FOI-based inspection-report campaigns.
• Whistleblower intake and distribution — curating insider photos and video and distributing them to allied organizations (Rise for Animals, PETA) for publication.

16 Jan 2023 — Westminster Hall: MP Elliot Colburn presented an e-petition debate on commercial breeding for laboratories, explicitly referencing Camp Beagle and the ongoing protest. MPs stated MBR Acres breeds 2,000 beagles per year.

25 May 2023 — Commons: Laura Farris raised MBR Acres in the context of animal-welfare legislative gaps. The minister acknowledged existing legislation and agreed to meet.

28 April 2025 — Commons: John Milne MP referenced both Labcorp and Marshall BioResources' beagle breeding facility “known as MBR Acres” in his constituency context.

Written questions (2025–2026): Ben Obese-Jecty asked about fuel supply continuity “due to ongoing protests”; Neil Duncan-Jordan questioned the claim that MBR Acres is critical to pandemic preparedness (the government answer described it as the UK's only supplier of research dogs); Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb asked about a ministerial meeting with MBR Acres' CEO — Lord Vallance declined to publish the correspondence.

Protest-law debates (late 2025): Commons and Lords scrutiny of “key national infrastructure” regulations repeatedly cited MBR Acres as an example in arguments about whether new protest restrictions were justified or overbroad.