UK Ministers Told Not to Engage Formally With Vantara Zoo Following Lobbying Efforts

British government ministers were told not to engage formally with Vantara, a private mega-zoo in India, following intense lobbying efforts by representatives of the facility. The directive comes as the United Kingdom chairs a 32-country committee meeting in Geneva for Cites, the United Nations body responsible for regulating the trade in endangered species. This situation highlights how a minister told his officials to maintain impartiality while navigating complex international wildlife compliance concerns.

Documents obtained by the Guardian and Mongabay under the Freedom of Information Act reveal that Vantara, operated by billionaire Anant Ambani, sought to influence British officials before the Cites summit. The meeting is set to review India's response to compliance issues regarding the import of endangered animals. In May, officials from the UK’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs met with a representative from Vantara and the US lobbying firm Checkmate Government Relations. Internal briefing notes indicated the firm aimed to persuade the UK to adopt a more sympathetic stance toward India's import practices.

The UK government advised ministers to avoid formal engagement with Vantara to ensure impartiality during Cites proceedings.

During the initial meeting, Vantara representatives invited UK officials to tour the 1,400-hectare facility in Gujarat. However, this invitation was declined to preserve the neutrality of the UK’s role as the Cites committee chair. Subsequent approaches by another lobbying firm, Atlas Strategy, to then-secretary of state Emma Reynolds and nature minister Mary Creagh also prompted a formal recommendation that ministers avoid direct engagement with the zoo.

Concerns Over Animal Imports

Conservation groups have raised questions regarding the rapid acquisition of over 150,000 animals at Vantara since 2022. While India’s supreme court cleared the zoo of wrongdoing last year, a Cites fact-finding mission in 2025 warned that such large-scale imports could inadvertently create demand for illegally sourced wildlife. The documents also detailed concerns regarding an application to import falcons into the UK, which British officials categorized as a commercial transaction. Vantara has since denied hiring lobbying firms or importing falcons from the UK, noting they have voluntarily suspended animal imports for one year and appointed former Cites chief John Scanlon to oversee operations.

Why it matters

The government’s decision to distance itself from Vantara underscores the strict regulatory oversight required for the international wildlife trade. By maintaining neutrality, the UK aims to ensure that its role in the Cites committee remains objective, directly impacting how compliance concerns regarding endangered species are handled on a global scale.