Bushmeat Trade >>>
What Is "Bushmeat"?
In many parts of the world, including much of Africa, what we often in the states call "forests" are referred to as "the bush". Thus,"bushmeat".
It is not uncommon in rural areas of Africa for some of the local game to be hunted by locals for their own consumption. The problem arises when poachers and hunters hunt animals (that are in many cases protected or endangered) for commercial operations or export. Various types of bushmeat are popular in trendy restaurants, where the meat is often exhorbitantly priced. Although many areas (including Kenya) have regulations for the handling and transport of bushmeat, as well as limits on what can be hunted and where, these regulations are often ignored, with poachers killing many protected species (including primates) and transporting them with little or no regard for health & sanitation requirements. The issues surrounding the bushmeat trade are often complicated by politics in the areas where this type of poaching is most common. See "Related Sites" to learn more about the broader issues related to the bushmeat trade.