More than 1,000 cats set to be slaughtered and offered as pork and mutton have been rescued by police in China.
The cats have been in a truck within the japanese metropolis of Zhangjiagang, when officers, who had acquired a tip-off from animal welfare activists, intercepted the automobile.
An unlawful commerce of cat meat was uncovered, sparking contemporary fears over meals security within the nation, the BBC reviews.
The animals have been moved to a shelter. It’s not clear whether or not they have been pets or strays.
In China, cat meat can promote for round 4.5 yuan (51p) per catty, which is a unit of measure much like 600g, in keeping with activists. A single cat can yield round 4 to 5 catties.
Activists had noticed wood containers containing the cats in a cemetery and monitored them for six days.
After seeing the cat containers being lifted onto a truck, the activists stopped the automobile and phoned police.
The story, which was printed on Chinese information web site The Paper, precipitated outrage amongst Chinese folks, with hundreds leaving indignant feedback on social media platform Weibo.
Many referred to as for tighter controls over meals security, whereas others mentioned extra ought to be performed to maintain defend animals.
One consumer mentioned: ‘I won’t be consuming barbeque meat exterior anymore.’
Another mentioned: ‘When will there be laws to protect animals? Don’t the lives of cats and dogs matter?’
For a long time animal rights activists have been combating for the Chinese authorities to clamp down on the commerce of canine and cat meat.
Many of those animals are stolen from their households and are crammed into the again of lorries for days with no meals or water earlier than being killed.
In 2020, the town of Shenzhen in China made historical past by turning into the primary authority within the mainland to ban the consumption and manufacturing of canine and cat meat.
It was a part of a wider ban that included wild animals, following the Coronavirus outbreak.
Worryingly, cats and dogs aren’t the one animals being served up in disguise as one thing else.
Earlier this yr a scholar at a school in Jiangsu was horrified to discover a rat’s head in his meal.
Initially, the varsity claimed it was duck meat however later admitted it was actually rat.
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