Campaign to ban Chinese bear bile farms
A campaign to ban the practice of milking bile from bears is gathering momentum in China after the release of a widely-circulating documentary exposed conditions in the industry. Journalist Xiong Junhu's documentary, which was shown at a recent conference in Beijing held by the charity Animals Asia, shows bears with holes or tubes in their abdomens to facilitate access to the bile being held in small cages. The bears are 'milked' up to three times daily and are sometimes held in the cages for periods of years.
Bear bile is held by traditional Chinese medicine to improve vision, cleanse the liver and combat fever, and the bile is sold in powder form at rates of approximately 130 yuan (£13-$21) per gram. However, the scientific merit of such claims has never been proven, and both herbal and synthetic substitutes are available. There are believed to be approximately 10,000 captive bears in China, and allegations of cruelty are also rife. "Chinese people simply don't know that for years we've been extracting bile from caged bears and that this business is legal in China," said Ms Xiong.
The release of the documentary coincides with a growing concern for animal welfare in China, and similar campaigns have also targeted the practice of eating dog meat and making soup from shark's fins. A petition signed by prominent Chinese figures is currently circulating to prevent a pharmaceutical company that trades in bear bile from listing on the Chinese Stock Exchange, and the proposed move has also met with furious condemnation in the Chinese blogosphere.
Defra has published guidance for the vet sector ahead of a proposed UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary agreement.
