Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Los Angeles (spcaLA) joins 37 other national and international animal and humane welfare organizations to urge California Governor Gavin Newsom and State Surgeon General Nadine Burke Harris to ban the sale and importation of wildlife and non-native species for human consumption in the state.
“Last week, spcaLA joined 68 members of the United States Congress in calling on the Director Generals of the World Health Organization and other global organizations to take aggressive actions for a global shut down of live wildlife markets,” said Madeline Bernstein, spcaLA President. “This week we are aiming closer to home.” In California, industries exploiting and trafficking wildlife as commodities for live food markets pose just as much a threat to public health and safety as do other wildlife farms and markets around the world.
As a member of PawPAC, a statewide committee that advocates for all nonhumans and their environment, to encourage transparency in the California State Legislature, spcaLA has engaged with California policy makers since 1993 on live food market issues in the state regarding the humane treatment of animals and the basis of health. Among other things, selling wild animals for consumption, creates higher potential for zoonotic disease transmission. It is believed that the 2003 SARS outbreak originated in this manner and may be the source of COVID-19.
Members of the public are urged to contact their U.S. Representatives and Senators and demand that action be taken. These practices are not only inhumane but are a threat to the safety and well-being of the community.