Fears spur poultry ban

BEIJING: China yesterday vowed to phase out the slaughter and sale of live poultry at food markets, in a move welcomed by animal rights activists amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The announcement came as China stepped up inspections of wholesale food markets and outlawed the sale and consumption of wildlife, after a recent COVID-19 outbreak in Beijing was traced to a major agricultural wholesale market.

The virus is believed to have emerged at a market that sold live animals in the central city of Wuhan late last year. Poultry kept in cages is a common sight in food markets and “wet markets” — smaller-scale fresh-food markets — and is commonly butchered on the spot by stallholders, or is killed at home by the buyers.