Very generally speaking, the distance of the institute conducting the research is not a huge concern in the face of modern communication technology and shipping availability. The most important factor in this particular decision is whether the university chosen was the best one for this particular job. It is possible, albeit seemingly unlikely, that this university was chosen because of its expertise in a particular area of animal research. To detect issues such as these, it is essential that decision makers in these scenarios declare any potential conflicts of interest before they commit to a choice.

There can be a number of reasons free of any cronyism-related accusations why such a university may be chosen. For example, the researcher’s contacts at said university may have resulted in the company’s ability to obtain the animal research at a lower cost. But this information, and the reasoning behind the decision, should be well documented to avoid both a conflict of interest and even the illusion of conflict of interest. After all, if rumours spread that the company is mismanaging its funds through favoritism in its contracts, this may result in investors pulling out, causing severe financial damage to the company.

As for choosing a university vs a CRO, the advantages of a CRO are that the study would be done more cheaply and faster (due to less overhead and specific procedures in place for normal business). However, a university may be likely to produce more accurate results by being more careful, because a university is more affected by the loss of prestige that results from publishing results that later are proven false.