Debate: Is it acceptable for other cultures to eat dog and cat meat?

Such delicacies are traditional in eastern countries. In Brazil, there is no specific regulation on consumption, but there are those who say that it is an environmental crime. Would you dare to try it? Check arguments for and against

Yes

– Is cultural issue and which has existed for centuries in various parts of the world. In the Chinese city of Guangxi, eating dog meat is a tradition. “And it becomes an imposition when Westerners say what Asians, for example, should or shouldn’t eat,” explains historian Renato Brancaglione

– Dog meat is consumed in countries like China, Ghana, Philippines, South Korea, Vietnam and even Switzerland. In the past, people like the Romans, the Dakota Indians and the Aztecs ate dogs. Even Hippocrates, the father of medicine, spoke well of dog meat, saying it is fortifying.

– Like other meats consumed around the world, dog and cat meat is rich in protein, essential in the human diet. After the Korean War, between 1950 and 1953, there was a lack of food and dogs became a valuable resource to avoid starvation. In addition, processed parts of euthanized dogs and cats are already used as animal feed

– According to UN estimates, in 2050 the world population will exceed 9 billion and the meat available for food, mainly beef and pork, will become increasingly scarce and expensive. The consumption of dogs and cats created for this would help to expand the food supply in the market

No

– be traditional it’s not the same as being right. In the West, it is common for dogs and cats to be seen as companion animals. Creating a food industry based on the slaughter of these animals would be a huge culture shock. In addition, religions such as Islam and Judaism condemn the practice

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– The sale is prohibited in South Korea – what is lacking is supervision. In Brazil, although there is no ban, a group of people was indicted in 2009 for crimes against the consumer relationship and against the environment, in addition to gang formation, for killing dogs and cats to sell the meat

– Despite having protein, dog meat is also high in fat. In addition, the lack of legislation makes it easier to consume inappropriate animals, without vaccination, capable of transmitting rabies and even cholera to those who eat it. Other benefits attributed to this type of meat, such as increased libido, have no scientific basis.

– The domestication of dogs and cats has been going on for thousands of years. And these animals are raised as if they were part of the family. Killing and eating them would not only be a act of cruelty but it also goes against article 32 of the Environmental Crimes Law, which prohibits injuring, abusing and mistreating domestic animals

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– How do vultures manage to eat rotten meat?

– How does a carnivorous plant eat meat if it has no stomach?

CONSULTANCY Perla Poltronieri, president of the NGO Catland, and Renato Brancaglione, historian

SOURCES Book They Eat That?by Jonathan Deutsch and Natalya Murakhver, Eating Animalsby Jonathan Safran Foer, and websites CNN, UOL, The Wall Street Journal, slate, EFE, The Guardian It is examiner

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