Wet market
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A wet market is a market that sells live animals in an open environment. They are commonly found throughout the world. Wet markets may sell live poultry, fish, reptiles, and mammals. A wet market may also refer to types of markets not necessarily selling live animals, but one that is selling fresh meat and fish in the open.
The floors and surroundings are often routinely sprayed and washed with water, to the extent of flooding it at several intervals, giving the wet markets their name.
[edit] Hygiene
If hygiene standards are not maintained at a wet market and there is failure to observe sanitation, wet markets may help spread disease and become a source of influenza viruses and other infectious disease agents for human beings. Severe acute respiratory syndrome outbreaks have been traced to wet markets in southern China.
In some cases, animals for sale may stay from days to weeks. Daily introduction of new animals provides optimum conditions for the development of disease agents such as influenza. Daily human contact with the live animals, and conditions are optimal for the transfer and evolution of infectious disease agents. This has led to criticism of many wet markets.
