Chimpanzee meat discovered in British restaurants and market stalls
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Illegal bush meat: The chimpanzee meat, which can cost more than £20 a kilogram, is part of a lucrative black market trade
The chimpanzee meat is understood to have been discovered following raids by trading standards in the Midlands.
A Government whistle blower revealed: ‘It is well known this practice is under way in the region but I was shocked to discover the meat that was tested was once a chimpanzee.
‘Dubious meat is often tested, and has turned out to be things like rats and vermin in the past – but chimpanzee is unbelievable.’
It is not known how the bushmeat arrived in the Midlands, but experts believe it was probably flown into the country from Africa, possibly concealed in personal luggage.smugglers often made no attempt to hide the meat and were caught smuggling the meat in suitcases.This could be because detecting and seizing bushmeat is not a priority for customs officials and the penalties for importing it are low and rarely enforced, he added.
The word bushmeat is used to describe the flesh of wild animals hunted in places like tropical forests in West and Central Africa, but also in Asia and the Americas.
According to the Born Free foundation, nearly 7,500 tonnes of illegal meat products enter Britain every year.
Some is bushmeat, brought in disguised as other meat products such as beef or lamb.
Once in Britain, more than half the illegal meat is distributed through wholesalers or sold at local street markets.
Dr Rowcliffe added that bushmeat products were not just imported for consumption but also for medicinal purposes or as status symbols, signifying luxury and wealth.
But he warned that imported meat could be carrying infectious diseases such as foot-and-mouth, anthrax, the Ebola virus, TB or cholera.
The bushmeat trade has also had a devastating impact on the numbers of primates living in the wild.
Adina Farmaner, Executive Director of the Jane Goodall Institute UK, said: ‘It is a reality that bushmeat is being sold on the streets of Britain and I am not surprised that is available in the Midlands.
‘From my own experience of Brixton market in London all you have to do is ask for some ‘special meat’ for a ‘special ceremony’ and you will get what you are looking for.
‘The bushmeat trade is a huge problem in certain parts of Africa and is one of the main reasons the population in the wild has been reduced from approximately one million about 50 years ago, to just a few hundred thousand today.’
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French connection: Last year, the first research on the import of bushmeat into Europe found over 270 tonnes passing through the Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris alone
Chimpanzee meat discovered in British restaurants and market stalls | Mail Online
African immigrants , turning Britain into a 3rd world country
