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Osofsky SA, Lieberman S, Walzer C, Lee HL, Neme LA. An immediate way to lower pandemic risk: (not) seizing the low-hanging fruit (bat). Lancet Planet Health 2023; 7:e518-e526. [PMID: 37286248 DOI: 10.1016/s2542-5196(23)00077-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2022] [Revised: 12/09/2022] [Accepted: 03/29/2023] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
What is the least that humanity can do to mitigate the risks of future pandemics, to prevent worldwide surges in human deaths, illness, and suffering-and more waves of multitrillion US dollar impacts on the global economy? The issues around our consumption and trading of wildlife are diverse and complex, with many rural communities being dependent on wild meat for their nutritional needs. But bats might be one taxonomic group that can be successfully eliminated from the human diet and other uses, with minimal costs or inconvenience to the vast majority of the 8 billion people on Earth. The order Chiroptera merits genuine respect given all that these species contribute to human food supplies through pollination services provided by the frugivores and to disease risk mitigation delivered by insectivorous species. The global community missed its chance to stop SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 from emerging-how many more times will humanity allow this cycle to repeat? How long will governments ignore the science that is in front of them? It's past time for humans to do the least that can be done. A global taboo is needed whereby humanity agrees to leave bats alone, not fear them or try to chase them away or cull them, but to let them have the habitats they need and live undisturbed by humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steven A Osofsky
- Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA; Department of Population Medicine and Diagnostic Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA; Cornell Wildlife Health Center, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA; Cornell Atkinson Center, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA.
| | - Susan Lieberman
- Wildlife Conservation Society, Global Conservation Program, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Christian Walzer
- Wildlife Conservation Society, Global Conservation Program, Bronx, NY, USA; Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Helen L Lee
- Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA; Department of Population Medicine and Diagnostic Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA; Cornell Wildlife Health Center, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Laurel A Neme
- Cornell Wildlife Health Center, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
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Gomes SM, Chaves VM, de Carvalho AM, da Silva EB, de Menezes Neto EJ, de Farias Moura G, da Silva Chaves L, Alves RRN, de Albuquerque UP, de Oliveira Pereira F, Jacob MCM. Biodiversity is overlooked in the diets of different social groups in Brazil. Sci Rep 2023; 13:7509. [PMID: 37160999 PMCID: PMC10170146 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-34543-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2023] [Accepted: 05/03/2023] [Indexed: 05/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Food biodiversity is essential for improving nutrition and reducing hunger in populations worldwide. However, in middle and low-income countries, the biodiversity of food production does not necessarily represent food consumption patterns by population. We used Brazil, one of the world's megabiodiverse countries, as a case study to investigate the following questions: what is the prevalence of consumption of biodiverse foods in Brazil, and what are the socioeconomic factors that influence their consumption throughout the country? We used data from a Brazilian representative national dietary survey to estimate the frequency of food consumption of unconventional food plants, edible mushrooms, and wild meat, in according to socioeconomic variables. Thus, we investigated the socioeconomic predictors of Unconventional Food Plants consumption using methods of Machine Learning (ML) and multiple zero-inflated Poisson (ZIP) regression. We showed that biodiverse food consumption in Brazil is low, just related by 1.3% of the population, varying in according to area, ethnicity, age, food insecurity, sex, and educational level. Our findings of low utilization of biodiversity suggest an important mismatch between the rich biodiversity of the country and its representation in the human diet.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sávio Marcelino Gomes
- Department of Nutrition, Federal University of Paraiba, Street Tabelião Stanislau Eloy, s/n, Castelo Branco, João Pessoa, PB, 58050-585, Brazil.
| | - Viviany Moura Chaves
- Multicampi School of Medical Sciences, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Caicó, RN, Brazil
| | - Aline Martins de Carvalho
- Department of Nutrition, School of Public Health, University of São Paulo, Av. Dr Arnaldo, 715, São Paulo, SP, 01246-904, Brazil
| | - Elenilma Barros da Silva
- Restaurante Universitário-Federal University of Para, Rua Algusto Corrêa, 01, Belém, Pará, 66075-110, Brazil
| | | | - Gabriela de Farias Moura
- LabNutrir, Nutrition Department, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Av. Senador Salgado Filho, s/n, Lagoa Nova, Natal, RN, 59078-970, Brazil
| | - Leonardo da Silva Chaves
- Escola de Educação e Humanidades, Universidade Católica de Pernambuco, Rua do Príncipe, n. 526, Boa Vista, Recife, Pernambuco, Brasil
- Museu de Arqueologia e Ciências Naturais da Universidade Católica de Pernambuco, Rua Oliveira Lima, 824, Boa Vista, Recife, Pernambuco, Brasil
| | | | - Ulysses Paulino de Albuquerque
- Laboratório de Ecologia e Evolução de Sistemas Socioecológicos, Departamento de Botânica, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife, Pernambuco, 50670-901, Brazil
| | - Fillipe de Oliveira Pereira
- FUNGI Research Group, Academic Unit of Health, Education and Health Center, Federal University of Campina Grande, Sítio Olho D'agua da Bica, s/n, Cuité, PB, 58175-000, Brazil
| | - Michelle Cristine Medeiros Jacob
- LabNutrir, Nutrition Department, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Av. Senador Salgado Filho, s/n, Lagoa Nova, Natal, RN, 59078-970, Brazil
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Rural–urban mobility influences wildmeat access and consumption in the Brazilian Amazon. ORYX 2022. [DOI: 10.1017/s0030605321001575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Research demonstrates substantial urban consumption of wildmeat and the existence of trade networks in the Brazilian Amazon. Yet rural–urban mobility persists in this urbanized region, with the circulation of people, goods and ideas, blurring boundaries between rural and urban lives. Here we examined the relationships between rural–urban mobility and wildmeat access in highly forested areas of central Brazilian Amazonia. We surveyed 798 urban households in four towns and 311 rural households in 63 riverine communities. Rural–urban mobility was common amongst urban households: 49.7% maintained rural livelihoods and 57.3% were headed by rural in-migrants. Although many urban consumers purchased wildmeat, gifting was equally important. Urban households with greater rural–urban mobility consumed more wildmeat and were less likely to purchase it. Buying wildmeat was rare in rural areas but emergent in larger rural communities. Rural consumption was greater in remote areas, non-floodplain communities and during the high-water season. Urban populations placed particular pressure on three preferred species: the lowland paca Cuniculus paca, tapir Tapirus terrestris and white-lipped peccary Tayassu pecari. Rural consumption was more diverse, and per-capita wildmeat consumption was four times greater in rural than urban households (21 vs 5 kg/person/year). Total estimated annual wildmeat consumption was 3,732 t across 43 riverine urban centres compared to 11,351 t in surrounding rural areas. Because of poverty in these towns and socially mediated wildmeat acquisition, it is debatable whether urban consumers should or could be denied access to wildmeat. Nonetheless, the probable future increase in urban demand and related risks to sustainable, equitable resource use necessitate the monitoring and management of rural–urban wildmeat flows.
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