The Hubei Province in China, which is the epicenter of the global COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak, has passed a new law that has banned the eating of farm-raised wild animals.
It is widely believed that the virus originated in the Wuhan Wet Market, which is the capital city of the Hubei Province.
The Hubei Province was the first to report the case of the coronavirus.
Out of the over 106,262 cases of the coronavirus, 67,500 cases have come from the region.
After the outbreak, authorities started to close down markets across the country that were selling badgers, deer, civet cats, turtles, peacocks, and even pangolins.
But, pigeons, quail, and rabbits are still allowed to be eaten under the laws of China.
As part of the precautionary measures of the country, the Hubei province has brought in the wildlife protection law, which forbids the consumption of all wild animals on land.
The new law bans the eating of farm-raised wild animals, as well as endangered and protected wild aquatic species.
No organization or individuals in China can publicize, induce, consume, or solicit illegal wild animals and their products or engage in illegal wildlife trading by publishing advertisements, make recipes, or even make signboards.
In case the animals are to be used by researchers and medical teams, the wild animals are to go through quarantine inspections and strict applications.
The latest law comes after speculations that the deadly virus could have come from wild animals.
According to researchers from the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, humans caught the virus from animals that were sold as food at the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market.
Since the beginning of January this year, the market was closed by the government for safety reasons.
The measures of China to combat the deadly coronavirus have been drastic, but it looks like their efforts are starting to achieve results.
On March 6, 2020, the Hubei province reported no new cases of the virus for the first time since the spread began.
106,262 cases of the novel coronavirus have been confirmed all over the world, and it has caused the deaths of 3,600 people.
There are no signs of slowing down of the virus.
As of writing this article, no vaccine for the virus is available.