A bile bear or battery bear is the term used for Asiatic black bears kept in captivity in Vietnam and China so that bile, a chemical produced by the liver and stored in the gall bladder, may be extracted from them for sale as a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). The bears are also known as moon bears because of the cream-colored crescent moon shape on their chest. The Asiatic black bear, the one most commonly used on bear farms, is listed as vulnerable on the World Conservation Union's (IUCN's) Red List of Threatened Animals.
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