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Ebola - bush meat handling

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  • Ebola - bush meat handling

    My humble opinion here.

    Ebola is endemic to bush meat. People depend on bush meat to live so this looks like it is going to be a reoccurring problem. It is easy for some to condemn the trade in and dependence on bush meat especially when they are well fed and do not have hungry children looking to them for a meal. Not everyone can get their meat on Styrofoam platters wrapped in clear plastic at the grocery store.

    Education can help and it does not look like there are the resources or infrastructure to do much else. Encouraging hunters, trappers, butchers and home and commercial cooks to use gloves and masks or a hood while handling bush meat might be a way to start. It would be an inconvenience and expense but it could help. The problem would be overcoming ingrained habit. It will be hard for many to transition to these simple practices even if cost and easy availability does not enter into the equation. It will be especially hard for those who have spent their entire lives butchering and preparing meat with bare hands. This may sound barbaric to those who have not grown up doing it. I am speaking for myself here also. I have to "think" before butchering; "I need gloves". It is not habit yet. Proper sanitation in processing the meat and cleaning and sanitizing the processing tools and containers used is also important. In my humble opinion this would be a good practice to teach in health class and not only in third world countries. These and other safe food handling practices could help limit infection and spread of some other zootic diseases as well.
    We were put on this earth to help and take care of one another.
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