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Old 23-10-2008, 01:44 PM   #11
Helen M
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I have signed. I wrote a letter some time ago and did recieve a reply. It was pretty sickening reading. They knew what they were doing was wrong and they still wanted to go ahead regardless. They mentioned some research that an 'independant' company had undertaken. When i asked to see it i was told no as it was company sensitive. No doubt it probably didn't exist or it told them they were wrong in the first place.
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Old 23-10-2008, 03:57 PM   #12
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I have signed. I wrote a letter some time ago and did recieve a reply. It was pretty sickening reading. They knew what they were doing was wrong and they still wanted to go ahead regardless. They mentioned some research that an 'independant' company had undertaken. When i asked to see it i was told no as it was company sensitive. No doubt it probably didn't exist or it told them they were wrong in the first place.
Helen xx
I have pm'd a reply!
Don't lose heart. Remember that the Tortoise won the race!!
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Old 23-10-2008, 05:51 PM   #13
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I signed up via http://www.thepetitionsite.com/petition/518761759 . The Tortoise Trust article now includes Walmart in the USA (therefore Asda in the UK) as suppliers of reptiles to the chinese food trade. This isn't just a fight against big business its a fight against generations of a cultural difference. There is still a thriving illegal import trade of wild caught turtles from Asia for the Chinese food market. Some of the images are distressing but the topic can be found at:
http://www.nwf.org/NationalWildlife/...articleID=1188

Were not immune to this ingrained cultural ignorance. Right here in the UK the Eel population (ok not cute, unlikely to be kept as pets but bear with me ) has been decimated (thought to be 98% of the population dead) by a virus. What has happened here?have we sought to ban the use of Eels in cuisine (I'm from London remember ) no. Whats happened is that Elvers, the tiny young of Eels, have become a delicacy. They, are fried, alive, and served up to mugs who will happily pay exorbitant prices for the dubious pleasure and Gordon bleeding Ramsey glorifies it on one of his stupid macho "hunting" trips on his TV show.

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Old 23-10-2008, 07:29 PM   #14
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I hope I din't sound lke I thought this is not a worthy cause (As Tesco's themselves say "every little helps") but it is the tip of the iceberg. Big businesses like Tesco's and Walmart will respond to a demand. The demand in China is for turtles. They are fulfilling that demand, they have no ethic's, thats why they got so big. However it's rife all over the world. Wheres the petition to ban frogs legs in France? There are no sanctuaries for legless frogs in France, they die. On a visit to to a Florida Alligator "sanctuary" I was offered Alligator meat to try as I walked through the door! We are talking about cultures different to our own but we must also look at ourselves. Why do we keep Tortoises and turtles? Is it because we feel we can offer then something better than the natural world can provide? They have survived for 250 million years, through ice ages, climate change and more. They are adaptable, do they survive rather than thrive in our care because of this adaptability? They will even breed in our care, is this because they are "happy"or is it to ensure the survival of their species under any circumstances? Why do we keep tortoises? its for our benefit. In much the same way the chinese gain pleasure from eating turtles we derive pleasure from keeping a wild animal. Therefore it is our responsibility to give something back to that captive animal, to ensure it does more than survive. This IS something we can all make a difference with as the task is your own personal responsibility not that of a business or a country.
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Old 23-10-2008, 07:36 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kirkie View Post
I signed up via http://www.thepetitionsite.com/petition/518761759 . The Tortoise Trust article now includes Walmart in the USA (therefore Asda in the UK) as suppliers of reptiles to the chinese food trade. This isn't just a fight against big business its a fight against generations of a cultural difference. There is still a thriving illegal import trade of wild caught turtles from Asia for the Chinese food market. Some of the images are distressing but the topic can be found at:
http://www.nwf.org/NationalWildlife/...articleID=1188

Were not immune to this ingrained cultural ignorance. Right here in the UK the Eel population (ok not cute, unlikely to be kept as pets but bear with me ) has been decimated (thought to be 98% of the population dead) by a virus. What has happened here?have we sought to ban the use of Eels in cuisine (I'm from London remember ) no. Whats happened is that Elvers, the tiny young of Eels, have become a delicacy. They, are fried, alive, and served up to mugs who will happily pay exorbitant prices for the dubious pleasure and Gordon bleeding Ramsey glorifies it on one of his stupid macho "hunting" trips on his TV show.

This is a great post! Fantastic to see people investigating the issue with Published facts. Yes indeed, Walmart too through it's Asian subsidiary is actively involved in the trade. There are also French and German multinationals who have invested in the burgeoning Chinese "SUPER" market!
However, these company's are investing their western shareholders funds, and still largely depend on the custom of consumers like all of us to fuel their global expansion.
Perhaps the ignorance of the consumer is the key point at issue here? -- For an informed public may choose to use their purchasing power to influence the corporate policies and future strategy of these global business's, and in doing so exert the necessary pressure on Governments to at least abide by CITES rules that are already signed up to!
The issues of the Asian Turtle trade are quite complex, and cover 1. Conservation. 2. Human health, 3. Animal welfare.
Your points in respect of the trade and consumption of Eels, though important should not distract the focus of a subject which needs clear objectives.
Through education, and public awareness the current policies of Western investment in China, can and should be undertaken with responsible and sustainable stewardship. To say that the culture of China is beyond change is to ignore the realities of a global market in the 21st Century.
If we just accepted that culture does'nt change, the fact is when the first Supermarket is opened in Borneo or PNG, we might accept that the heads of the local natives might well be served up? (Only if they were farmed of course).
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Old 23-10-2008, 07:52 PM   #16
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Education, education, education as someone once said. It's the key. Thats why the petition is a valid and worthy means of protest. The head of Tesco's probably only see's profit sheets not petitions. My only concern is at what point do Western consumer opinion's, and therefore Tesco profits, become negated by the huge potential of the Chinese consumer market.
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Old 23-10-2008, 09:09 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kirkie View Post
Education, education, education as someone once said. It's the key. Thats why the petition is a valid and worthy means of protest. The head of Tesco's probably only see's profit sheets not petitions. My only concern is at what point do Western consumer opinion's, and therefore Tesco profits, become negated by the huge potential of the Chinese consumer market.
As they say, "Every LIDL helps"!!
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Old 07-11-2008, 01:34 PM   #18
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Default Tesco Meeting

We had the meeting with Tesco's Corporate Responsibility Director, and one of her colleagues yesterday. Another two and a half hour session!
Though not itself conclusive, it is clear that the pressure from members of the public here in the UK is definitely ringing bells at the highest levels in their organisation. It was agreed that their 20 million UK customers does mean rather more than the return on their sale of 100,000 live Turtles in China in the last year of operations. However, no decision has been made to withdraw at this time.
No doubt that further work is required, and continued support to the "Care for the Wild" petition is still necessary.
For latest information; www.careforthewild.com
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Old 09-11-2008, 01:23 AM   #19
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Good news. Shame that any descision appears as if it will be made on economic viability rather than welfare concerns. Sounds to me like they're saying "were not making that much out of it and its not worth the grief".
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Old 09-11-2008, 06:54 PM   #20
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Not as much as they're making out of the UK anyway. Thanks Paul for keeping us updated, what's next? I know the petition is growing and hopefully making an impact
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