CNN
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Hong Kong authorities have raided a shop suspected of selling dog and cat meat as food. More than 70 years have passed since he was banned from trading.
Officials seized “suspicious samples of dog or cat meat” at a store in the Yau Ma Tei district during a “joint blitzkrieg” by the city’s Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Conservation and the Food and Environmental Health Department on Thursday night.
The AFCD said it had conducted a raid and arranged testing of the seized samples following reports that the meat was being sold in Yau Ma Tei, a densely populated commercial and residential district in Kowloon district.
They are also investigating whether the restaurant was selling raw meat without a permit.
In a statement, the AFCD said it “will be prosecuted if proven.”
Eating dog and cat meat has been banned in Hong Kong under semi-autonomous city laws since 1950, and the news prompted both lawmakers and animal welfare advocates to call for greater enforcement efforts. became.
In a Facebook post, Rep. Gary Chan said the sale of cat and dog meat was “unacceptable.”
“Hong Kong has banned eating cat and dog meat for over 70 years,” the legislator said. “This incident highlights that spot checks by law enforcement were not frequent enough.”
A raid by a government agency claimed the meat was being sold frozen for about $12 a loaf (a local unit equivalent to about 1.3 pounds), according to local media reports.
local rights group Animal Cruelty Prevention Society On Friday, it said it “strongly condemns” the sale of dog and cat meat for human consumption.
It urged the public to contact police and other relevant authorities immediately if they believe they are being sold.
Hong Kong’s Dogs and Cats Ordinance states that “No one shall slaughter a dog or cat for use as food, whether for the benefit of mankind or not, nor shall the meat of a dog or cat be used as food. It may not be sold or used, or allowed to be sold or used.”
Violators face fines of up to $640 and six months in prison if convicted.
Worldwide, an estimated 30 million dogs and 10 million cats are slaughtered for human consumption each year. Human Society InternationalAnimal consumption in parts of Asia is fueled by illegal trade and slaughter.
