The meat of a protected species of brown bears in the EU may soon be available to eat in Slovakia after the popular government has approved the sale.
Last month, the Cabinet authorized the plan to shoot a quarter of the country’s 1,300 brown bears in response to some recent deadly confrontations.
The state-authorized slaughter has been criticized by protectionists and opposition politicians, including the European Parliament. The brown bear has been listed as a “closest threat” species in the EU.
However, the Slovakian government is pushing with the project and announced this week that the meat will be sold to the public by the Kald bears to prevent waste.
From next week, If all legal and hygiene conditions are met, firms under the Ministry of Environment may provide meat for sale.
State Minister Philip Kufa said that it was a waste to send animals to the dead body disposal facilities in the past.
“We release every shot animal that meets certain conditions for use. Why? Because the bear meat is edible,” he said.
Bears have become a political issue in Slovakia after an increasing confrontation with humans, including deadly attacks.
Slovakia ranks second in Europe, estimated to have about 13,000 brown bears behind Romania, for the number of attacks.
The country reported a total of 54 bear attacks from 2000-2020. Rough statistics indicate that the average number of attacks has risen to 10 per year.
In April, a man was killed while walking in the jungle of Central Slovakia.
After a while, Prime Minister Robert Fiko declared The Cull: “We can’t live in a country where people are afraid to go to the woods.”
He said his government would shoot up to 350 brown bears – he said – a person equal to the entire population of the species in Spain.
Their government argues that the bear has caused a high population problem.
However, environmental groups and critics say that it should focus on prevention.
Michelle Vyagic, MEP of Eco -Scientist and Opposition Progressive Slovaki, The government’s plan to BBC last month was “nonsense” And it has already failed to limit the number of attacks by “unprecedented killing of these protected species”.
He argued that thousands of confrontation a year had passed without an incident, and he hoped that the European Commission would intervene.
Miroslava Abelova of Greenpeace Slovakia called the Kalling project “completely reckless”, alleging that the government had ignored conservation laws and scientific suggestions.
Brown bears are strictly protected under EU directions, and can only be killed in exceptional circumstances – such as threats to public safety – when no other alternatives exist.
Bear meat is not usually eaten in Europe and is only considered delicacy in some areas such as Eastern Europe and some areas such as Nordic countries.
In most EU member states, strict hunting rules and protected state of bears are rarely available. When it is there, it is usually from controlled stones or licensed prey and usually not found in restaurants or stores.
If the bear is consumed, health authorities alert the risk of trichinella – this is a parasite that causes serious disease in humans.
The European Union Food Safety Control must be checked before selling all bear meat to trichinella larvae and the US’s disease control prevents at least 70 degrees centigrade internally cooked temperatures to kill the parasite. It is not safe to freeze, smoke or dry the meat.
