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'braised Koala' In China Restaurant


samoyedman
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http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-news/braised-koala-gets-traveller-stewing-20111031-1mr6u.html

An Australian traveller says he was horrified to find a live koala for sale at a restaurant in southern China where the menu was offering the iconic marsupial for dinner in either "braised or stewed" varieties.

A sign on the cage holding the animal advertised "koalas" for purchase at a rate of 139 yuan ($A20) for 500 grams.

It was one of a number of live exotic animals, including birds and fish, on display at the restaurant in Panyu district, Guangdong.

Advertisement: Story continues below The traveller, who visited the area last week, got down on his hands and knees and snapped a photograph of the caged animal, which was lying next to a carrot.

The man's colleague told radio 3AW he was stunned to be given the option of eating the cuddly creature.

"It's 100 per cent right, that photo," the caller said today.

"There's a carrot in the cage, the idiots have put a carrot in there.

"The restaurant had a large selection of birds, fish and other sorts of exotic animals on display that the diner could chose from for their gastronomic delight."

A later caller suggested that animal was an Asian "tree bear" of some variety, but the traveller who took the photograph said he was convinced it was a koala.

It prompted a call from Melbourne businessman Geoff Balsillie, who was similarly disturbed recently to find live caged animals for sale in a restaurant in an area neighbouring Panyu in southern China.

"I was taken to a restaurant for lunch by my host ... and after the lunch I went to check the plumbing and found all of these cages with all these animals, so I took a few photos," he told radio 3AW.

"There was an egret, a marmot, some water fowl and a few others. I'm not sure whether they were on the menu. There were signs on the cages with numbers on them, telling you how much they were. I don't know whether that was for a gram or for the whole beast, but they were obviously for sale. There was also the fish and snakes and the turtles and all the other things that they normally eat as well, but these animals were the ones that sort of got to me."

Mr Balsillie complained to his Chinese host, who tipped off police and the restaurant was soon raided, he said.

"They released the animals and she [his host] said she didn't win any friends," Mr Balsillie said.

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is there anything the chinese wont eat? infuriates me. :mad :mad

seems nothing and the more rare it is the more they want to eat it.

Absolutely bloody disgusting.

How on earth did it get there is my question!

I was watching something on SBS a little while back where the guy was at a Fish factory in Japan I think and there were fish to be bid on and bought.

Very large Blue Finned Tuna - an endangered species, there was around 30 of these fish available for sale on that one day. :(

Then they went to a resturant where you could fish and catch your tea - yeah okay. Only problem was they filleted it and served it up.....with the now filleted fish........who was still alive. None of the people could understand the English blokes horror.

Bloody bloody cruel and not necessary.

We are trying to save the wild population of Blue finned Tuna and they are auctioning them off to the highest bidder.

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How can consuming Koalas be in their customs??????

One reason I refuse to travel to certain countries as I will not give them any money or any form of support int he terms of being a tourist in their country/s

Exactly! But that's their piss-weak excuse for their cocked-up behaviors!

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How can consuming Koalas be in their customs??????

One reason I refuse to travel to certain countries as I will not give them any money or any form of support int he terms of being a tourist in their country/s

Exactly! But that's their piss-weak excuse for their cocked-up behaviors!

Yes you are right there.

Same as many supposed customs that involve animal cruelty. No bloody excuse. I am not going to tell my husband as he will get mad but also gets extremely upset at crap like this.

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How can consuming Koalas be in their customs??????

One reason I refuse to travel to certain countries as I will not give them any money or any form of support int he terms of being a tourist in their country/s

Exactly! But that's their piss-weak excuse for their cocked-up behaviors!

Yes you are right there.

Same as many supposed customs that involve animal cruelty. No bloody excuse. I am not going to tell my husband as he will get mad but also gets extremely upset at crap like this.

I understand completely. I think I am a very understanding and accepting person in most cases, but this stuff just pisses me right off. There is absolutely NO need to eat a Koala. The Chinese aren't starving, nor are they short on choice, they simply have no regard for anything living. If it makes them feel important or unique they will kill and eat it, and half the time it seems the more cruel and grotesque the method of slaughter, the better! In many cases these people begin preparing an animal for the table while still alive.... kill the damn thing first, you pack of cruel pricks!!!

Would love to stick them in a wire cage with a carrot..... you can guess what would come next for the poor Koala.

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I read that koala - given its natural diet - tastes yucky anyway. Ie notes from hungry early explorers. There's some critters they would not eat.

I had a discussion with the second chinese restaurant I'd visited locally that had "shark fin soup" on the menu. And was assured that it wasn't really shark fin. It was some sort of artificial shark fin.

A bit like "crab stick" isn't really made of crab.

I'm not sure if I believed the woman - I said I'd be a lot happier if the menu said "artificial shark fin soup". And I haven't been back to either restaurant.

Surely it's not ok for restaurants in oz to be selling stuff that isn't what the menu says it is?

though if leggos can call pesto made with cashew nuts or peanuts instead of pine nuts "Traditional" maybe anything goes.

PS The critter in the photo looks like a small wallaby to me.

Edited by Mrs Rusty Bucket
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$20 for 500grams = $40 per kilo. Considering beef scotch fillet sells for around $28 per kilo in Australia, I very much doubt that an animal like a koala, which would be as rare as hens teeth in China, would be for sale for such a small amount. It's not likely to be a koala.

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I can understand eating Roo but Koala, no thanks

whats the difference?

I dont think that's a koala ... look at the size compared to the carrot? If that is an adult koala that is one giant carrot. The head and coat look wrong too, I reckon it's some giant rodent type creature marketed as something exotic.

When you're upset you see what you want to see.

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Settle down people it doesnt even look like a koala.I bet they didnt know what it was so they thought they would call it a koala.Do you know how hard it would be to smuggle one there and how much it would cost.Tens of thousands of dollars to end up in a restaraunt.I dot think so.What would a koala weigh?10 kilos maybe,so your telling me for the poultry some of a few hundred thy would gut it and eat it.For christ sake use your heads.Honestly some of you believe everything you read.

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I am quite settled and yes it doesn't look exactly Koala like.

Does not take away the fact I do wish to go there or support what they do in any way if I can help it. It does not take away the fact I think they are cruel and disgusting..............

And when it comes to reports of them eating odd things - yep I beleive it.

Also Roo's are in plague proportions in Australia, Koalas are not.

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I still doesnt see how that makes one animal more edible then another, just due to numbers. Or is it just the fact it's a marketed cute animal?

In a country where affluence and luck is a big thing to aim for they dont see it the way we do. Just need someone to go there and educate them really.

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If the carrot and pictures don't convince you, try the price. $A40/kg for smuggled animal that can't be kept alive on food that is readily available? Come on! That's the equivalent of an Australian restaurant offering roast panda at <$100/kg. Not gonna happen. I suspect the whole thing is a send up. There are some people out there who really don't like the Chinese.

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I can understand eating Roo but Koala, no thanks

whats the difference?

I dont think that's a koala ... look at the size compared to the carrot? If that is an adult koala that is one giant carrot. The head and coat look wrong too, I reckon it's some giant rodent type creature marketed as something exotic.

When you're upset you see what you want to see.

Roo tastes good, I doubt Koala would be edible. If it were, I would surely have heard reports from a stupid relative or someone I know eating it. The only thing I've ever heard about them is that they taste disgusting.

Edited by Pav Lova
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