Would you like virus with that?
Announcement posted by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) Australia 12 Mar 2020
The Editor
Dear Editor,
With the World Health Organisation (WHO) confirming we're in the midst of a pandemic – along with taking the Department of Health steps to safeguard our own health – it’s time we face the link between viruses like COVID-19 and humanity's flesh fetish.
Human demand for meat means that huge numbers of animals, such as chickens and pigs, are crammed together on crowded, faeces-ridden farms, transported in filthy trucks, and slaughtered on killing floors soaked with blood, urine, and other bodily fluids. Pathogens flourish in such conditions, making factory farms a breeding ground for new strains of dangerous bacteria and viruses.
Public health experts believe the coronavirus originated at a live-animal market and according to the US Centers for Disease Control, more than 75% of emerging diseases originate in animals. In this way, COVID-19 is similar to other infamous coronaviruses, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). All three spread from other animals to humans. Likewise, swine flu originated in pigs and bird flu in poultry.
The best way to prevent future pandemics is to shift away from animal agriculture. We can do this by avoiding meat like the plague, and instead opting for healthy, humane vegan meals.
Sincerely,
Mimi Bekhechi
Campaigns Adviser
PETA Australia
PO Box 20308
World Square
Sydney NSW 2002
(08) 8556 5828
mimib@peta.org.au
Dear Editor,
With the World Health Organisation (WHO) confirming we're in the midst of a pandemic – along with taking the Department of Health steps to safeguard our own health – it’s time we face the link between viruses like COVID-19 and humanity's flesh fetish.
Human demand for meat means that huge numbers of animals, such as chickens and pigs, are crammed together on crowded, faeces-ridden farms, transported in filthy trucks, and slaughtered on killing floors soaked with blood, urine, and other bodily fluids. Pathogens flourish in such conditions, making factory farms a breeding ground for new strains of dangerous bacteria and viruses.
Public health experts believe the coronavirus originated at a live-animal market and according to the US Centers for Disease Control, more than 75% of emerging diseases originate in animals. In this way, COVID-19 is similar to other infamous coronaviruses, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). All three spread from other animals to humans. Likewise, swine flu originated in pigs and bird flu in poultry.
The best way to prevent future pandemics is to shift away from animal agriculture. We can do this by avoiding meat like the plague, and instead opting for healthy, humane vegan meals.
Sincerely,
Mimi Bekhechi
Campaigns Adviser
PETA Australia
PO Box 20308
World Square
Sydney NSW 2002
(08) 8556 5828
mimib@peta.org.au