New zoo puts exotic animals on menu

Important guests at the grand opening of a safari zoo in northern Thailand will not only get to see exotic animals, they’ll get to taste them.

The Chiang Mai Night Safari Zoo will have its official opening on New Year’s Day, and the “exotic buffet” marking the event will include tiger, lion, elephant and giraffe, says Plodprasop Suraswadi, the director of the zoo project.

“The VIP guests who pay 4,500 baht (€93.50) for the buffet will have the privilege of tasting an exotic menu, ranging from dog meat (from Thailand’s Sakhon Nakhon province) to lion meat from Africa,” Plodprasop said.

Critics say it will encourage wildlife trafficking in a country and region already notorious for smuggling tiger parts, bear claws and endangered species for Chinese delicacies, traditional medicines and pets.

“Serving rare animals on the table confirms that Thailand is ignoring policies for wildlife preservation,” said Wildlife Fund Thailand secretary Suraphol Duangkae.

“Thailand’s image is already bad for trading animals and being a transit and laundering point (for smugglers),” Suraphol said. “The zoo will make only the image worse by serving rare animals.”

Kenya said last week it would give Thailand 175 wild animals – including African buffalo, various species of antelope, zebra and giraffe – as a gift to strengthen relations, but conservationists voiced concern that Thailand did not have a good track record of wildlife management and conservation.

The project, based on Singapore’s Night Safari Zoo, will have 2,000 animals of about 100 different species.