Other countries, like Cameroon, want development aid for village schools and water systems in exchange for conservation guarantees. The bill is modeled after successful elephant and rhino measures. That s equal to the operating budget of a single large national park in the United States, such as Yellowstone. There s a lot of disposable income in this country and we need to tap into it, said Conservation International s Russell Mittermier. Price is another way to control the trade and reduce demand.
Trouble is, westerners can t agree what bush meat costs or how much to tax it.
Often the meat is heavily smoked and dishes are cloaked in wine-based or peanut sauces. But in frontier towns, the unadorned meat sells for a fraction of the cost of beef and chicken. It s protein that poor people can afford. We re not sure what s driving the trade, Wilkie said. Conservationists, most of whom are white, wince at charges they want to cut off food to fast-growing black nations.