Fw: News from Animals Asia - SCMP article

[Guest guest]

-

" Annie Mather " <amather

<Animal Friends:>

Tuesday, December 07, 2004 8:44 AM

News from Animals Asia - SCMP article

Hi Everybody,

 

 

ParknShop are one of Hong Kong's biggest supermarket chains, who are

expanding into the Mainland. Herewith the story that appeared in today's

South China Morning Post, our leading English language newspaper.

 

 

All the best,

Annie

 

 

Tuesday, December 7, 2004

 

Dog meat sold at ParknShop store in Shenzhen

The chain vowed two years ago to stop the practice, which is legal on the

mainland

 

 

ANNEMARIE EVANS

 

Dog carcasses in a ParknShop store in Shenzhen. SCMP photo

 

ParknShop has again been selling dog meat in Shenzhen despite vowing two

years ago to stop the practice.

 

A shopper at its Dongmen Megastore secretly took photographs of dog

carcasses hanging in the shop on November 28. These were passed to the

Animals Asia Foundation, a rights group.

 

" Whole dog carcasses were strung up in the supermarket, " said Animals Asia

director Jill Robinson. " It's a very disappointing turn of events. After we

contacted them, ParknShop agreed to stop selling the meat, but they just

thanked us for our concern. There was no apology. "

 

ParknShop's public relations manager, Teresa Pang Sau-kwan, said sales of

dog meat had been stopped last week.

 

" It has been and continues to be our company's strict guidelines not to

sell dog meat in our stores, even though the selling and consumption of dog

meat on the mainland is legal, " she said.

 

" We sold it for around two weeks in only six stores in Shenzhen and

Dongguan , and stopped selling already on December 2. We only sold a limited

quantity, which accounts for [the] small revenue, " she said, without giving

details. ParknShop has 28 stores in southern China, she said.

 

She said the dog meat had been sold because new managers were unaware of

the supermarket's rules.

 

" We have new ParknShop management in China, and we have immediately

communicated with them and demanded that our company guidelines be strictly

followed. They took immediate action to stop selling this product already on

December 2, and reissued the company guidelines for all stores to follow

strictly in the future,'' she said.

 

She did not know which suppliers had been providing the dog meat.

 

But Ms Robinson was dissatisfied with their response. " They've never

provided any details on who their suppliers are. Two years ago we met

ParknShop executives to discuss the issue of the horrendous slaughtering

practices at markets in southern China.

 

" To their credit, they're not denying it, but I just feel that these

responses are so flippant, considering that they have been engaging in

practices that are abhorrent.

 

" We're pleased that they've withdrawn the sale of dog meat once again from

their shelves, but would like to know what measures they now have in place

to ensure this will never happen again. "

 

It is legal to sell dog meat on the mainland, where it is a winter delicacy

that costs more than chicken or beef. But in August 2002, ParknShop came

under fire from animal rights groups and actress Gigi Fu Ming-hin, an owner

of five dogs and author of a pet-care book, for selling dog meat.

 

Ms Robinson said when she contacted Malina Ngai, the general manager of

corporate communications at ParknShop, she told her about Animals Asia's use

of dogs in their programmes to cheer up people in orphanages, hospitals and

homes throughout Asia.

 

She asked the supermarket whether it was interested in supporting her

programmes with dogs, but they did not respond.

 

 

--

Annie Mather

Executive Director, Head of Media

Animals Asia Foundation

Hong Kong

 

ANIMALS ASIA HAS A BRAND NEW WEBSITE!

Find out more about the " China Bear Rescue " and " Friends....or Food? "

http://www.animalsasia.org