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Opinion | China must outlaw the trade and consumption of exotic animals, not only to protect endangered species, but also for the health of mankind

  • The outbreak of the Wuhuan coronavirus, also linked to a market where wildlife was sold for food, once again highlights the lack of regulation of wildlife trade. Considering the huge costs to health and the economy, it’s time to ban the trade permanently

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Customers line up outside a store suspected of selling trafficked wildlife in Anji city in Zhejiang on January 17. Chinese law allows the captive breeding of wildlife for commercial purposes, provided that companies obtain a licence from provincial authorities. But such licences are often used to cover up illegal trade. Photo: Anti-Poaching Special Squad via AP
The outbreak of a novel coronavirus has brought back many memories of the severe acute respiratory syndrome epidemic in 2002-03, not least because of their apparent association with the sale and consumption of exotic animals. This time, the virus appeared to have originated from a market in Wuhan, a city of 11 million residents in central China.
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Visiting a market in Guangzhou in 1996, I thought I was touring a zoo: peacocks, squirrels, foxes, snakes, monkeys, dogs, civets and lots of caged cats, all alive.

During the Sars outbreak, researchers linked the spread of the disease to civet cats in a market in Guangdong province, although it originated in bats. The Sars outbreak killed 813 people worldwide and infected 8,437 in total.
The latest coronavirus not only calls into question the Chinese government’s management of a public health crisis, but also reignites a national debate about the consumption of wildlife. Many are asking why the wild animal trade wasn’t banned after Sars.

On January 21, the State Administration for Market Supervision, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, and the National Forestry and Grassland Administration jointly issued an “emergency notice” on strengthening the supervision of wild animal markets and improving epidemic prevention and control.

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