Wild Animal Trade Ban

In response to the coronavirus pandemic, China is introducing a nationwide ban on wild animal trade, including consumption and farming. The deadly pandemic likely started in a wildlife market in Wuhan. 

The Wuhan market was packed with wild animals for sale. Deer, snakes, raccoon dogs, and porcupines were squeezed into cages in close contact with people in the crowded market. This close environment made it possible for the coronavirus to spread from animals to humans. Although authorities are not certain which animal transferred the virus to people, some believe that it was either a bat, snake, or pangolin. 

Markets like the one in Wuhan are common in China. When exotic animals are in close proximity to each other, it’s easy for viruses to spread from one species to another. With many daily visitors, it makes it more likely that the viruses will also be transferred to humans. 

“These animals have their own viruses,” Leo Poon, a Hong Kong University virologist professor, told CNN. “These viruses can jump from one species to another species, then that species may become an amplifier, which increases the amount of virus in the wet market substantially.” 

In response to the coronavirus outbreak, the country enacted a temporary ban on the farming and consumption of “terrestrial wildlife of important ecological, scientific and social value.” This ban will probably become law later in 2020. 

This is not the first time China has taken measures to limit wild animal trade. In 2003, authorities banned and killed large numbers of civets, which are similar to mongooses, after learning that they were likely the origin of the SARS virus. However, civets are still consumed in China today. (1)

Cultural and Economic Significance

The exotic animal trade is deeply significant in China, both culturally and economically, which will make it more difficult for authorities to enforce the ban. A 24-year-old college student from southern Guangxi province told CNN that her family frequently dines at restaurants that have exotic animals on the menu. She shared the belief that eating wild animals gives the consumer the animal’s characteristics, such as physical strength. (1)

And because wild animals are more expensive, eating them is a status symbol. One peacock can cost up to $144 USD. “Wild animals are expensive. If you treat somebody with wild animals, it will be considered that you’re paying tribute,” the college student told CNN. (1)

The student, who used a pseudonym for her interview with CNN, doesn’t think that the ban will last. “The trade might lay low for a few months … but after a while, probably in a few months, people would very possibly come back again,” she said. (1)

Another challenge with enforcing the ban is that China’s wild animal trade is a huge industry. In 2017, the industry was worth more than $73 billion, employing over one million people. (1)

But not every Chinese citizen supports the consumption of exotic animals. A 2012 survey by Beijing Normal University and the China Wildlife Conservation Association showed that 52% of the people surveyed across the country didn’t support wildlife as a source of food. In Beijing, 80% of those surveyed thought that wildlife should not be consumed. (1)

Loopholes in the Ban

The thing that may make enforcement of the ban most difficult is that the ban itself includes loopholes and lacks clear guidance for authorities. One loophole is that exotic animals can still be used in traditional Chinese medicine. (1)

Wildlife advocate Aron White shared some insight on why this loophole could be an issue in an interview with CNN. “[Currently], the law bans the eating of pangolins but doesn’t ban the use of their scales in traditional Chinese medicine. The impact of that is that overall the consumers are receiving mixed messages.” And it means that wildlife could be raised or sold for use in traditional Chinese medicine but then illegally sold as food. (1)

The ban says that the trade of wild animals for medicine will need to be “strictly monitored”. However, it did not include specifics on what the monitoring will look like or what penalties will exist for people who abuse it. (1)

While the wild animal trade ban is an important first step, China will need to take many others to ensure its success.