![]() ![]() “In the face of Covid-19, it is understandable that around the world there are calls for shutting down all wet markets,” said Duan Biggs, senior research fellow in the Environmental Futures Research Institute at Australia’s Griffith University. It remains unclear, however, how many of those have completely stopped trading wild animals. In response to the coronavirus pandemic, the Chinese government temporarily banned the trade of wild animals for food in late February and is currently drafting a permanent law to further tighten controls.Īccording to Chinese state-run media Xinhua, at least 94% of mainland China’s wet markets had been reopened as of March 22. AFP PHOTO/Peter PARKS (Photo credit should read PETER PARKS/AFP/Getty Images) PETER PARKS/AFP/Getty ImagesĬhinese government reveals draft list of animals which can be farmed for meatĪfter SARS authorities in several provinces tried to tackle the wildlife trade, banning the sale of some animals such as civet cats and snakes, but many of the bans either weren’t enforced or were quietly removed. China has ordered local governments across the country to tighten supervision of pork markets and pig farms to prevent a deadly pig disease identified as streptococcus suis bacteria which has so far killed 38 people in the province from spreading further, state media said. The consumption of wild meats is not common, especially in big cities, and consumers often have to travel to specific sites to purchase rare or exotic animals.Ĭhengdu, CHINA: Pigs in their pen at a farm on the outskirts of Chengdu in China's south west Sichuan province 02 August 2005. Some wet markets, however, can provide an outlet for the trade in exotic wildlife, which according to a 2017 Chinese government report was worth more than $73 billion.īut the trade, while lucrative, is by no means mainstream. Similar markets can also be found in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. There is one in almost every district and none of them trade in exotic or wild animals. In Hong Kong, for example, there is a widespread network of wet markets where thousands of locals shop everyday for their meat and vegetables. Wet markets are a common sight not just in mainland China but across Asia. Members of staff of the Wuhan Hygiene Emergency Response Team conduct searches of the closed Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in the city of Wuhan, in the Hubei Province, on January 11. They are referred to as “wet” owing to the fact that floors are often hosed down after vendors wash vegetables or clean fish. Some, but not all, also sell live animals. Speaking on April 3, the US’ top infectious disease specialist, Anthony Fauci, told Fox News that all wet markets should be “shut down right away,” saying he couldn’t understand why they were still open.īut wet markets, as opposed to dry markets, which sell non-perishable goods such as grain or household products, are simply places that offer a wide range of fresh produce. The novel coronavirus, which has infected close to 2 million people globally, is believed to have originated in a wet market in the city of Wuhan, where wild animals such as porcupines and deer were being sold and slaughtered for food and medicine. That might be surprising – because recently the term wet market has become almost synonymous with Covid-19 for some people in the West. If you have ever been to a shopping area where butchers and grocers sell fresh produce straight from the farm, then you have been to something that would, in some parts of the world, be called a wet market. ![]()
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