Corona pandemic: Close slaughterhouses instead of curfews

Narrowing the debates about the Corona pandemic exclusively to the biomedical, technological or economic perspective and thus irresponsibly shortening them is disturbing in the acute crisis atmosphere.

For weeks, the coronavirus Sars-CoV-2 has kept the world on edge. Following the traces of globalized travel activity, another disease spread across the entire globe in no time. Many disease pathogens transported this way originate from wild animals, some come from domestic animals or livestock. 75 % of newly emerging infectious diseases have an animal origin.

It is time we face the fact that it is our appetite for meat, milk and eggs that promotes so-called zoonoses. Moreover, this behavior ensures that we will be confronted with novel and difficult-to-control viruses at increasingly shorter intervals.

These dangerous viral infections and diseases repeatedly occur in animals. SARS, MERS, Ebola, HIV, Borna viruses, monkeypox, avian flu, foot-and-mouth disease, swine fever, influenza and BSE, to name just a few. Some are extremely dangerous for humans and can even lead to death. In addition, consuming meat and animal products increases the risk of developing lifestyle diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and obesity. Moreover, meat and its production are environmental destroyer number one. More than 98% of meat comes from factory farming. Billions of animals suffer under inappropriate housing conditions – it is pure animal cruelty.

Much more concerning than the current Corona pandemic, however, is the persistent refusal of political, economic and social decision-makers to take action against the causes of epidemics and pandemics with the same determination with which they restrict the social, economic and civil life of all people during acute outbreak situations.

Responsible health, economic and security policy must not be limited to quarantine and emergency measures, but must take these connections into account. Apparently it is easier to restrict people's freedom of movement than to rein in the meat industry, as well as its supporters and their ruthless pursuit of profit. Yet this would be necessary anyway to reduce the massive environmental impact of agriculture, livestock farming and transport and to protect people from their often health-damaging products. This system is thoroughly sick!

Meat is unhealthy in medical, psychological, moral and spiritual respects. IG Wild beim Wild therefore calls for immediate closure of slaughterhouses.

The world's largest association of nutritional scientists (American Diet Association and the Canadian Society for Nutrition) state clearly: "Well-planned vegan and other forms of vegetarian diets are appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, lactation, early and later childhood and adolescence. Vegetarian diets offer a number of benefits.”