Animal Rights Group Says: “MasterChef Ecuador” Used Endangered Meat

• A group representing animal rights is bringing charges “MasterChef Ecuador”Use meat from endangered animals.
• The January 3 episode’s meat was labelled as deer, shark, crocodile and capybara.
• YouTube has removed part of the episode purporting to show endangered meat.

“MasterChef Ecuador”An animal rights group said that a January 3 episode aired where contestants were asked how they would prepare endangered meat.

The National Animal Movement of Ecuador, also known as Manimalistas(MAN) alleged that Teleamazonas, the broadcaster of reality-cooking, supplied contestants with meat from endangered animals in an episode.

Since then, the episode was removedStarting at Teleamazonas’ YouTubeAccount and Replacing the original version with the deleted portion purporting to show endangered-animal fleshVice reported Monday.

However, MAN tweeted a statement on January 1st A minute-long clip of the episodeThis picture shows slabs of meat on wooden cutting boards, each one being individually labeled. “Tollo,” “Banilla,” “Venado,” “Capibara.”

—MANIMALISTAS ECUADOR (@MANimalistas) January 4, 2022

“Tollo”Vice reported that the term is a common Ecuadorian term for different types of sharks. Vice believed it to have been used to describe the humpback smoothhound shark. The species are classified as “critically endangered”International Union for Conservation of Nature.

“Banilla”This refers to a specific type of crocodile. “venado” “capibara”Vice translates both to venison or capybara. Vice reports that they translate as venison or capybara. “MasterChef” episode did not provide further details on the exact animal meat that appeared to be used, but MAN representative Fernando Arroyo Avilés told Insider that it likely included white-tail deer and a species of Amazon crocodile. Teleamazonas didn’t respond to Insider’s request for comment.

Friday’s statement by Instagram: MANThe organization wrote: “We ask the producers of the program and the channel that broadcasts the program for an explanation of where the meat of these animals came from.”

Carolina Sanchez is one of the judges “MasterChef Ecuador,”The meat was from a farm, said the manufacturer.According to French publication News24. Insider did not receive a response from Sanchez to our request for comment.

However, in an email to Insider on Tuesday, Avilés, who is also a farm animals specialist, said he believes it is “highly likely”That “MasterChef”The meat was purchased by the producers through “questionable means.”

“When an influential international franchise like MasterChef promotes the use of wild animals as ingredients for an ‘exotic recipe,’ it is a punch in the gut for animal rights movements,”He added.

He stated that so far they have received “absolute silence”Teleamazonas and producers after repeated requests for clarity.

The Ecuadorian and Colombian environmental government departments have publicly condemned the show’s use of wild animals.

On January 4, Ecuador’s Ministry of Environment, Water and Ecological Transition made a statement denying the use of any graphic content Promoting wild species useAnd it could cause an increase in illegal eating of endangered species.

The following day, Carlos Eduardo CorreaColombia’s environment minister tweeted that his office would investigate the type of meat in the program. “Wildlife trafficking and commercialization is a crime in Colombia,”He wrote.

Insider reached out to Ecuador’s Ministry of Environment, Water and Ecological Transition, and Colombian’s Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development for clarification.