Alibaba’s Taobao Bans Sales of Wild Meat After Coronavirus Outbreak

On January 23, Sina reporters found that searches for the names of wild animals such as civet, muntjac and river deer on Taobao were not returning any results.

Previously, the National Center for Disease Control and Prevention announced that the source of the new coronavirus pneumonia was likely the wild animals traded for their meat in the Wuhan Seafood Market. According to online reports, one of the stores at the market sold up to 42 types of wild animal meats, including bamboo rats, raccoons, civets, foxes, peacocks, and wild geese.

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Academician Zhong Nanshan, leader of the high-level expert group of the National Health Commission, also pointed out during a live broadcast with CCTV that it is unclear which animal was the initial bearer of the coronavirus. According to the epidemiological survey, the virus comes from wild animals, most likely bamboo rats and badgers.

Alibaba has made several attempts to fight the disease. Earlier, Alibaba stated that it had established a special working group. As of 18:00 on January 22, the company coordinated with 92 domestic mask manufacturers, with their inventory of the masks totaling 461.22 million. The above-mentioned manufacturers are expected to continue to produce 1.57 million units before the spring festival. It is estimated that after the festival the daily production capacity will reach 16.289 million units.