BopCo publication exposing the clandestine bushmeat market in Brussels

Early last week (09/11/2020) it was announced that 2 monkey carcasses and 3 kg of crocodile meat were intercepted at Zaventem during the international customs operation 'Thunder'. Our own article, which appeared online in Biodiversity and Conservation last Wednesday, demonstrates that there is a clandestine market for this type of meat in Brussels. Our results reveal that various mammal species, including CITES-listed species, are being sold as bushmeat at prices at the top of the range of premium livestock and game meat. Apart from it being a major threat to biodiversity in many regions, the trade in bushmeat is also of public health concern since up to 75 % of emerging infectious diseases in humans are of zoonotic origin, including COVID-19.


The European Union prohibits the import of meat (products) unless specifically authorised and certified as being eligible for import. Nevertheless, various scientific papers report that passengers from west and central African countries illegally import large quantities of meat, including bushmeat, into Europe via its international airports. These papers also suggest that African bushmeat is an organised luxury market in Europe.


In the article entitled “Exploring the bushmeat market in Brussels, Belgium: a clandestine luxury business” we explore several aspects of the African bushmeat market in Brussels. We demonstrate the clandestine nature of this market where bushmeat is sold at prices at the top of the range of premium livestock and game meat. Inquiries among central and western African expatriates living in Belgium, who frequently travel to their home countries, indicate that the consumption of bushmeat is culturally driven by the desire to remain connected to their countries of origin. DNA-based identifications of 15 bushmeat pieces bought in Brussels, reveal that various mammal species, including CITES-listed species, are being sold. Moreover, we find that several of these bushmeat pieces were mislabelled.

Mon, 2020-11-16 14:49 -- BopCo
Scratchpads developed and conceived by (alphabetical): Ed Baker, Katherine Bouton Alice Heaton Dimitris Koureas, Laurence Livermore, Dave Roberts, Simon Rycroft, Ben Scott, Vince Smith