Is bushmeat just another conservation bandwagon?

There is currently great interest in the sustainability of bushmeat hunting (bushmeat being any wild animal by hunted for human consumption). All the big conservation ‘players’ have contributed to the debate, issued statements or funded research. IUCN's World Conservation Congress in October 2000 and the CITES Bushmeat Conference of the Parties in April 2000 both discussed bushmeat. Both organisations have since sponsored initiatives in West and Central Africa aimed at obtaining action on the issue. Major conservation organisations are funding research, including the Wildlife Conservation Society (which has a long track-record in this field) and Conservation International. The World Bank has commissioned a major report on the issue (Bennett & Robinson, 2000). Fauna & Flora International (FFI) is a partner in a UK government-commissioned project identifying priority research areas. Conservation organisations have formed the US-based Bushmeat Crisis Task Force (see http://www.bushmeat.org), of which FFI is a member, and the UK-based Bushmeat Working Group of the Tropical Forest Forum (see http://www.forestforum.org.uk), where academic conservationists and government policy makers can exchange experience and ideas.