Guest guest Posted November 19, 2003 Report Share Posted November 19, 2003 ***************************Advertisement*************************** eCentral - Your Entertainment Guide http://www.star-ecentral.com ***************************************************************** This message was forwarded to you by yitzeling. Comment from sender: This article is from The Star Online (http://thestar.com.my) URL: http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2003/11/19/features/6631181 & sec=\ features ________________________ Wednesday November 19, 2003 SARS ban still bites <b>Hong Kong snake traders are on a slippery slope as China still has not lifted its ban on wildlife exports, reports PETER LIM.</b> HONG KONG snake traders are in for a bleak winter as China & #8217;s ban on wildlife exports, introduced to curb SARS, threatens to deprive them of their livelihood. Traders fear their formerly flourishing business selling snakes as a delicacy could even be doomed if the mainland ban continues indefinitely. They have written to the central government in Beijing pleading for the ban to be lifted, claiming about 130 traditional snake shops and 1,000 employees are in danger. The ban was introduced after Chinese researchers said the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) virus found in three types of game animals & #8211; civet cats, racoon dogs and badgers & #8211; could also be carried by snakes and bats. Most snakes from the mainland come from southern Guangxi and Guangdong provinces. SARS first surfaced in Guangdong last November before spreading to more than 30 countries around the world, killing more than 800 people out of some 8,000 infections. Most of the victims were in China and Hong Kong. Some restaurants offering annual snake banquets have cancelled their events because of the shortages, while others were forced to accept only advance orders, snake traders said. Industry sources said some 90% of the snakes sold in Hong Kong were from the mainland, while the rest comes from Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia. For the first nine months this year, Hong Kong imported some 17,000 snakes, while last year some 60,000 snakes were imported, according to figures from Agriculture and Fisheries Department. Though there are no estimates of total losses available, Mak San of the century-old Shea Wong Lam (Snake King Lam), Hong Kong & #8217;s oldest snake shop, said “business has not picked up since the economy in Hong Kong turned bad six years ago, and with the SARS, it has worsened.” “Now, we & #8217;re running out of supply because of the ban on the mainland,” said Mak. “Eating snakes is a tradition that goes back thousands of years, and the tradition still goes on despite SARS.” Kan Oi-ho, who runs the 70-year-old Shea Wong Yuen (Snake King Yuen) in the Mongkok area, described the SARS fears and ban as “one disaster after another”. “We can & #8217;t wait any longer for the mainland to lift the ban as there are rents and wages to pay,” he said. Kan called the ban a “misunderstanding”, saying that SARS was being used as an excuse by China, which was trying to protect endangered snake species from extinction following excessive trading as Chinese medicine or exotic cuisine. He said traders in Hong Kong hoped Beijing would at least lift the ban on snakes grown on farms, rather than those caught in the wild. “We use very few snakes in Hong Kong, compared with the mainland,” Kan added. According to the China Wildlife Conservation Association, mainlanders consume more than 10,000 tons of snakes every year. Snake trader Chow Ka-ling, who runs a snake shop in Sham Shui Po, said the Hong Kong dealers had asked China to double-check that snakes could carry the SARS coronavirus. “We simply asked authorities to verify again,” he said. But despite the SARS scare, snakes are still a sought-after form of nutrition during the winter in Hong Kong. “It smells and tastes good,” said Kwong Han-yuk, a 35-year-old construction worker savouring a bowl of steaming soup filled with shredded snake meat mixed with pieces of chicken meat and mushrooms at a snake shop in Wanchai. “It is good for the body,” Kwong said, giving the soup a thumbs-up. “I have eaten it every year and nothing is wrong with me,” he said, brushing aside the possibility that snake meat could carry SARS. Many believe that snake meat has medicinal properties, including curing rheumatism, preventing excessive sweating during the night, increasing blood circulation and keeping the body warm. Others believe drinking rice wine flavoured with snake blood or gall bladder can strengthen the body against rheumatism. But perhaps one of the main reasons for the popularity of eating snakes is the belief that their meat is an aphrodisiac. & #8211; AFP <p> ________________________ Your one-stop information portal: The Star Online http://thestar.com.my http://biz.thestar.com.my http://classifieds.thestar.com.my http://cards.thestar.com.my http://search.thestar.com.my http://star-motoring.com http://star-space.com http://star-jobs.com http://star-ecentral.com http://star-techcentral.com 1995-2003 Star Publications (Malaysia) Bhd. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of Star Publications is prohibited. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.