Wang Zhilin used to eke out a living from rice farming in the central province of Jiangxi. Then she switched to a more lucrative trade — feeding China’s voracious appetite for exotic animals, the consumption of which many believe is at the root of the coronavirus outbreak.
“Raising wild animals is more profitable than growing crops,” said Ms Wang. She farms civet cats, a raccoon-like animal, and made a profit of Rmb50,000 ($7,140) last year by selling 33 full-grown animals — more than twice what she would have made from growing rice.
Parts of China have a tradition of consuming exotic wild animals as food or medicine, despite the implication of some species such as civet cats in the Sars epidemic 17 years ago. Now the animal trade’s suspected role in the deadly coronavirus outbreak has put the practice in the sights of China’s senior leadership. The executive body of the country’s parliament, is expected to review measures to curb the business on Monday.