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Masked man in Hong Kong market
Jayne Russell/ZUMA Wire/Alamy Live News
Wildlife protection
BREAKING: Wuhan, China, bans eating of wildlife in response to COVID-19

WASHINGTON—The Chinese city of Wuhan, which was the first to record human cases of COVID-19, has banned the consumption of all wildlife. This follows similar bans in the cities of Beijing, Shenzhen and Zhuhai, and an as-yet temporary nationwide ban on wildlife

HSI
Europe
European Commission will start supporting plant-based diets in new Farm to Fork Strategy, but “chickened out” of removing EU funding for meat promotion

BRUSSELS—The European Commission will promote a shift to planet-friendly plant-based diets, according to its long-awaited Farm to Fork Strategy published today. As well as tackling climate impacts of food, reducing obesity rates and cancer prevention are cited as key health reasons why

Europe: Prioritise human-predictive, non-animal approaches to cancer research

The European Commission is inviting public input on its strategy for beating cancer. Currently, more than 1 million animals are used each year in European cancer research, funded by taxpayers to the tune of millions of euros. Yet despite the high welfare

Trevor Mogg/Alamy
Wildlife protection
China’s wildlife farmers offered buy-out to grow plants instead of porcupines in COVID-19 crackdown

WASHINGTON—Wildlife farmers in two provinces in mainland China are being offered a government buy-out to facilitate a move away from breeding wild species for consumption, as part of the country’s crackdown on the wildlife trade in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic

Hoang Xuan Thuy Live dogs being sold by a dog trader in Vietnam May 2020
Global
VIDEO: Campaigners unite to urge governments across Asia to shut down dog & cat meat trades as ‘perfect breeding ground’ for next public health disaster

WASHINGTON—Animal protection groups from around the world have joined forces to urge governments across Asia to act urgently to permanently shut down unsanitary and brutal dog and cat meat markets and trades, amid growing global concern about zoonotic diseases and public health

South Africa
UK tabloid story gets it wrong about South Africa and COVID-19

South Africa—Following publication of an online story in the UK’s Daily Express newspaper, published (11 May 2020), Humane Society International-Africa has released the following statement of clarification regarding the misleading nature of its headline and various quotes attributed to Audrey Delsink, HSI-Africa’s

Masked man in Hong Kong market
Jayne Russell/ZUMA Wire/Alamy Live News
Global
If it fails to support an end to wildlife markets, the World Health Organization would fail to protect human health

WASHINGTON (May 8, 2020)—The Associated Press is reporting that a scientist from the World Health Organization does not support closing live animal markets, such as the one in Wuhan, China, linked to COVID-19. The remarks were reportedly made by WHO food safety

Jean Chung/for HSI Dogs are shown locked in a cage at a dog meat farm in Hongseong, South Korea, on Saturday, February 8, 2020.
Global
South Korean dog meat farmer quits the trade to grow vegetables with help from Humane Society International’s pioneering approach

SEOUL—More than 70 dogs found languishing on a South Korean dog meat farm by animal charity Humane Society International have been given a second chance by the farmer’s decision to quit the dog meat industry once and for all. Mr. Nakseon Kim

Jean Chung/for HSI Dogs are shown locked in a cage at a dog meat farm in Hongseong, South Korea, on Saturday, February 8, 2020.
Canada
Over 70 dogs saved from slaughter as Humane Society International shuts down 16th South Korean dog meat farm

MONTREAL –More than 70 dogs found suffering by HSI on a hybrid dog meat farm and puppy mill in South Korea have been rescued and relocated to a temporary boarding facility in South Korea. Once safely off the farm, the dogs will

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Jean Chung/HSI