Interesting responses to “TESCO sells turtles in China”
Posted by pelf in Charity, Conservation & Environment, Turtle TalksI have received some very interesting feedback from visitors, forum members other blog readers regarding my previous post on the petition to persuade TESCO to stop selling turtles in China.
I do not claim myself to be an expert in this matter because reality is, I am not. I am merely a student who happens to be working with a species of freshwater turtles that are listed as Critically Endangered in The World Conservation Union, and since I am writing my thesis, I do have a fair amount of facts in my head as I write this..
One of my commentators argued:
I’m not convinced commercial cultivation will necessarily further endanger the species, my common sense tells me the opposite is true (and I believe I have read something to that effect), but I stand corrected if anyone can prove otherwise.
Some points to consider:
- The softshell turtles (Pelodiscus sinensis) take between 5-6 years to mature and reproduce. The amount of people who consume turtles increase exponentially every year (mostly in China) so the turtles that are cultured would NOT be enough to feed the market. So guess where more turtles are brought in from..?
- If the turtles are made so readily available in the markets, it would vet the public’s appetite and they would buy and consume things that they do NOT normally do.
The same commentator also brought up a very interesting issue which I had noticed earlier:
If the issue here is the inhumane method of which the turtle is killed, the correct response should be to implement more humane method of killing the animal, rather than banning the sale.
By the time a more humane method of killing the animal is implemented and enforced, there would be no more turtles left in the wild. Which will bring us back to the commercial cultivation of the turtles *points up*
A forum member asked me this:
Isn’t boiling alive the same way lobsters are cooked? If it’s acceptable for lobsters, why not turtles? They aren’t dissimilar creatures.
Frankly speaking, I’m not sure how lobsters are cooked but I work with turtles. I’ve dissected dead turtles and I know how much strength is needed to cut open a 2-year-old turtle’s plastron (the underside). It takes a very strong person to cut through the plastron, another strong person to hold the carcass while the first person tries to completely remove the plastron.
Let’s put it this way, would you still eat a chicken if it was killed in such a way?
But of course, the most important point here is that the turtles are becoming extinct if we do not take the necessary steps to conserve them. The lobsters probably are too. In fact, everything will go if we do not consume/take sustainably. The seas can’t be producing lobsters and turtles for us forever, you know.. In fact, Mother Nature just can’t take the pressure anymore..
Yvonne helped spread the message in her post — Yvonne: “I would stop shopping at TESCO until they stop selling animals in stores. TESCO must realize the Power of Comsumers allow us to decide when a business entity had crossed morality lines.”
One of her readers said:
If chickens/ducks are not bred intensively, and somebody sets up a trust against those who eat chickens/ducks, what happens? Question is, what makes tortoise or any animal special? Just because they are going extinct doesn’t quite justify it. We can breed various animals after all…It’s just the matter of whether we do it or not in large numbers.
To put it in simple terms, I’d like to think that chickens/ducks/cows are farm animals and that they are bred for food. And I guess that makes them different from turtles. Turtles are NOT originally bred for food. Just like how rhinos aren’t bred for food.
If the fact that an animal species that is going to become extinct doesn’t warrant people to stop consuming it, I wonder what would??
Another of Yvonne’s commentator sounded pretty rude to me. He said:
Big deal. They still sold them turtles everywhere even if TESCO doesn’t.
However rude he may sound to me, and probably to you too, he did have a point there. Truth is, a lot of people are selling turtles in every corner of the world. Why? Because the turtles can NOT only be sold as food, they can be canned, their carapace (shell) can be made souvenirs, their fat can be used to make soap, their skin leather. In fact, every part of the turtle can be used.
And he was also right when he said “big deal” (albeit a tad sarcastically) because truth is, the excessively killing of the turtles could really drive them to extinction. We may not feel it right now, but ask your parents about the leatherback turtles. I’m sure they had seen at least one in Terengganu in the 1970s or 1980s. But if you asked me whether the leatherback turtles are coming back to nest, I’m sorry, they aren’t.
So you see, TESCO may be a UK company, and the practice of killing and eating turtles may be a norm in China, but if we could convince TESCO to stop selling turtles in their chains, we would definitely make some difference in the lives of THOSE turtles. And imagine what happens if a big brand name like TESCO stops selling turtles and adopt a more sustainable approach, many other smaller chains would follow suit and that, my friend, would make a hell of a difference!
So pleaseeee, if you haven’t done so, sign the petition to persuade TESCO to stop selling live turtles in China.
If you think this post might benefit other bloggers:
Well, I agree with you. My action would be, stop myself. Others we can’t control
Turtles is quite a good herbs stuff in China, that’s why a lot of Chinese love it. I personally only eat those animals which are meant to be eaten 
My weight to this discussion is that Tesco is a 50% venture with Hymall, a local hypermart operator in China, who’ve probably been selling turtles all this while.
Anyways, there is an abundance of wildlife or exotic animal trade in China, all of which should be stopped, since the supposed benefits of consuming such animals are always unproven, even false.
I don’t think it’ll make a lot of difference petitioning to Tesco, since the Chinese environment is such that there is a lot of illegal poaching and exotic animal trade, but any small difference will create an impact, and every small bit of good will still be good.
I think as education increases in China, the current craze for exotic animals will subside - I think the unprecedented riches many Chinese have currently is driving this trade. However, taking into consideration the Chinese culture of valuing exotic animals, unless the government itself cracks down on such practices, I think it will continue to be a problem.
The Chinese eat endangered animals - preferably wild ones - out of superstition and ego (extravagant displays of opulence are culturally acceptable), so I doubt commercial farming would help much. And yeah, the population explosion won’t help, either. It’s not just turtles; they’ll eat just about anything.
Not all species can be efficiently farmed. The giant sturgeons and Mekong catfishes; tigers, bears and rhinos, etc; the costs would be higher than the profits. Plus, they take too long to mature.
(Some chefs argue that invertebrates like lobsters, crabs and molluscs have different nervous systems and therefore, are incapable of feeling pain the way we do. So, boil away.)
Killing an animal for food is already a sin; how it is killed won’t matter at all. It’s even more immoral when it is not a question of life and death. I’m not going to die if I don’t sample, say, a slice of whale, or turtle soup, not when there are more common and cheaper alternatives. If I’m stuck in a forest for days without a bite to eat? … I’ll get back to you after I brain that panda senseless for supper.
Getting Tesco to stop selling live turtles is fine. But the mainland Chinese are resourceful, and have money to burn. They’ll get their wild game fix elsewhere.
My two cents. Feel free to disagree.
Sorry if I sounded rude previously.
Giant Sotong got a point there. If you can make the Chinese (or any other people for that matter) stop consuming turtles or other exotic animals, that would make a huge difference for your cause. They won’t be selling them if there’s no demand in the first place right?
Like moz says; unless the government itself cracks down on such practices and they begin some serious education on wildlife preservation, I think it will continue to be a problem.
By the way, you should remove your Adsense there cause I found a couple of ads promoting turtle trades! How ironic!
This news is new and shocking to me. I have 2 pet turtles at home. They’ve been with me for nearly 10 years now and I seriously cannot imagine them becoming food.
I think it’s important to change people’s mindset. Same thing goes for shark. They’re going to disappear from our planet soon. But no matter where I go for wedding dinner, they will serve shark’s fin soup. I told them not to eat.. At least I can make a difference.
80% of their response was: They’ve killed it. If we don eat it, it’ll be wasted.
There.. With this kind of mentality, no wonder animals like turtles and sharks going to disappear soon.
wong: Exactly. Some people consider turtle soup and meat and jelly aphrodisiac, but as a researcher, I can tell you that all those claims are baseless and not scientifically proven.
moz: It doesn’t matter to me whether TESCO is a joint venture or a standalone company, though you were right that China has been the leading market in terms of selling exotic animals (and for food). While I agree that it will not make a huge difference petitioning to TESCO, I believe that if it was successful, it would produce a chain reaction where other smaller companies would follow in TESCO’s footsteps, and THAT, would make a lot of difference.
Giant Sotong: During the wars many centuries ago, people survived on sea turtles that they caught from the seas. The turtles could be restricted by turning them over (turn turtle) and they have a lot of meat that could last many people for very long.
But that isn’t the case these days. We have so much food to eat that we do not have to depend on exotic and slow maturing animals such as turtles anymore.
Afif: I cannot make the Chinese (or any other people for that matter) to stop consuming turtle meat. But what I can do is to spread the awareness on the importance of conserving this critically-endangered creatures.
You were so right when you asked, “They won’t be selling them if there’s no demand in the first place right?” You have just proven that whenever there’s demand, people will kill turtles, regardless of whether they’re farmed or caught from the wild.
And you know I can’t control what Adsense ads appear on my blog, right? It’s NOT that I purposely advertise the use of turtle products of whatever..
Alvin: When I attended one of my girlfriend’s wedding dinner last year, we were served with shark’s fin soup too. I declined it, and one of my other friends said the exact same thing: “Don’t let them die in vain.”
If she wasn’t one of my close friends, I would have bitten her back sarcastically. Everybody on the same table knew that I was in the conservation line, and that I chose not to eat shark’s fin soup but they also knew that they were not obliged to follow suit.
Hi everyone,
My name is Paul N Davis, I raised the Turtlesco Tesco petition that is being referenced here.
It is good to see your thoughts and interaction, thankyou for taking the time to raise and debate the issues.
There are two main issues that I hope the petition covers adequately, Conservation and Animal Welfare. If you take the specifics away from the petition it clearly sets out the issue: should we allow our own companies to go abroad and trade in a way that would be prosecuted or condemned in their country of origin ? Should we allow them to ignore the values and initiatives that we have worked so hard for in animal welfare and conservation ? Is it not the responsibility for our companies to raise standards worldwide not lower them to whatever minumum they can get away with ?
This would heavily depend on whether we feel that it is our responsibility to protect conservation worldwide and raise animal welfare standards worldwide. Some may be happy just to live in a country where those standards exist and not care what happens elsewhere.
With many countries becoming multi-cultural societies it would suggest that it would be best for us all to have similar values.
If we allow TESCO to ignore expert advice, endanger and kill turtles inhumanely what will come next ? A TESCO supermarket in a dense Chinese populated area of the UK that does the same under the ‘license’ that they are only supplying ” what their customers want ? ” Maybe a TESCO that sell live dogs or cats because that is what the customers want, the principles are the same. Where does it stop, if left unchecked where could it progress to ?
Would you be happy with TESCO doing what they are doing in China in your street, with your children walking in the supermarket and seeing live animals hacked to death ?
If you wouldn’t allow it here, then why allow them to do it elsewhere ?
You may say ” I do not allow it “, the reality is by saying nothing you are allowing it, by spending money in TESCO you are infact funding it.
The future of the world really is in your hands, an action of signing any petition can make democratic major change, doing nothing, can allow a major change by a minority.
In this case doing nothing allows TESCO to sell live animals in China. It allows them to sell frogs which are commonly skined alive. It alows TESCO to butcher the turtles alive in their supermarkets and to allow their customers to take the live turtle home to kill them in anyway they wish.
In the UK that would not be allowed, TESCO would be prosecuted and more than likely would be shut down and shunned by the public.
The facts regarding conservation and inhumane killing are clear on the petition, I do no want to duplicate those here, please read it carefully, the answers to some of the questions I have seen here are within the petition.
I hope the issues are clear to you, the decisions and actions you take as individuals will determine what the world will be like for your children and the following generations.
You all have something very special, choice and a voice, whatever the issue, always make sure you make your voice be heard, staying silent and doing nothing, does exactly that, nothing.
Take care, my friends, feel free to contact me direct if you so wish.
These turtles need your support, their existence is under threat, they are killed inhumanely. A turtles decapitated head can survive for an hour, nobody would want to subject you to the video evidence, please trust in the experts statements, I have seen the video, what they say is true.
Paul N Davis - Turtlesco
paul@turtlesco.com
I’ve already asked Mom to stop buying groceries at TESCO. WUakkaa
And my coursemates too. And also my neighbours. 
Hi Pelf,
Well done and thank you for signing the petition. Every signature will let Tesco know how many people object, so it is important for us to get as many signatures as we can.
Thank you again for your support and promotion of this issue.
Take care, Paul N Davis - Turtlesco