Filthy farms and markets brimming with sick, distressed animals could be hotspots for the emergence of deadly new viruses that might be transmitted from animals to humans. Top health experts have cautioned that in order to stave off future pandemics, the fur trade and wet markets must be halted urgently, dubbing them a ticking time bomb.

The same concern extends to the highly unnatural conditions of factory farms, where an enormous number of animals live in close proximity indoors. According to experts, these settings might serve as prime zones for the quick proliferation of viruses and bacteria amongst numerous animals.

The Mirror has uncovered the first known UK instance of ‘reverse zoonosis’, where human flu has been detected in a pig from a factory farm. This revelation was tucked away in government surveillance data from a Northern Irish pig farm.

The implications for both zoonotic and reverse zoonotic disease risks are concerning, especially as the farm where the discovery was made had also reported cases of swine flu. Similar instances of human-to-pig infection have been recorded in the US, yet this is the first-ever reported UK case.

Green Britain Foundation founder Dale Vince warned: “We’ve seen bird flu in humans and now buried in a government report we’ve found evidence of human flu in pigs for the first time.

“How long will we wait before these preventable diseases trigger another pandemic? We need to overhaul our relationship with animals and radically rethink our food systems.”

Experts claim that the stress of captivity impairs animals’ immune systems and amplifies the rate of “virus shedding” heightening the threat of zoonotic diseases – those transmitted from animals to humans.

Last month, Dr Hope Ferdowsian from the University of New Mexico School of Medicine joined a panel urging UK MPs to implement a fur export ban in Britain to halt the trade permanently “to prevent future outbreaks and pandemics, and for the sake of public health”. Alongside her was Dr Jakob Zinsstag of the University of Basel who voiced concerns over the dangers posed by the fur trade.

He remarked: “There is clear evidence that fur farming poses a significant risk of zoonotic disease emergence and as part of efforts to prevent the next pandemic, we must move away from high-risk practices such as intensive fur farming and activities which support them.”

Earlier in the year, a study examining animals bred for fur in China highlighted 39 viruses classified as “potentially high-risk” for human contagion.

From April 2020 to February 2021, there were at least 422 Covid outbreaks across 289 mink farms in Europe and North America. Despite closing its last fur farm in 2003, the UK has imported over €900m worth of pelts since then.

Now, Parliament is debating a Bill that could see the UK take a global leadership role by backing a ban on importing and selling fur. Claire Bass, Humane World for Animals UK’s senior director of campaigns and public affairs, stated: “Fur farms are a ticking time bomb for deadly infectious diseases, all for a completely outdated ‘fashion’ product that no-one needs.”

While most bushmeat trade caters to domestic markets in West and Central Africa, an illegal international trade also exists, reaching African expat communities in cities like London, Paris, Brussels and New York. Additionally, animal body parts are used in traditional medicine, which forms part of an international racket.

Specialists have cautioned that the bushmeat trade endangers not only wild animals such as chimpanzees and other primates but also increases the risk of zoonotic diseases jumping to humans.

Dr Ben Garrod, Professor of Evolutionary Biology and Science Engagement at the University of East Anglia, highlighted the insufficiency of current controls: “Airlines and border agencies are great at stopping people, drugs and weapons from being smuggled. But here we are with something more fundamentally dangerous than any act of terrorism or natural disaster, yet it is allowed to go largely unchecked.

“Until those transporting products of animal origins internationally are stopped, we are going to see primates, pangolins and other exotic, endangered animals coming into the UK, Europe, USA and Asia. Unless that stops we are going to see more epidemics and more species in decline.”

He additionally raised the alarm about the hazards posed by ‘wet markets’ or similar commercial wildlife hubs, as well as by heavily populated ‘mega-farms’. He stated: “These places all provide the perfect conditions for the development and spread of disease, where multiple species are exposed to one another, typically in high numbers, often in highly stressful and unsanitary conditions.

“Mixing wild and domestic species and species from different biological groups, such as birds, reptiles, and mammals, increases the likelihood of disease developing but also mutating, to a point where they are able to ‘jump’ between species. Adding humans into the mix only makes matters worse. It’s a biological time bomb just waiting to go off.”

Sonul Badiani-Hamment, FOUR PAWS UK Country Director, stated: “Five years ago, the world came to a standstill as the COVID-19 pandemic forced governments to confront the undeniable link between animal welfare and human health. Yet today, intensive farms and wet markets still operate unchecked – a ticking time bomb for the next global health crisis.

“The evidence is clear: when animals suffer, humans suffer. To break this dangerous cycle, we must end all involvement in and association with high-risk industries like the fur trade, where animals are farmed in appalling conditions with no regard for the serious threats to public health.”

Responding to the reverse zoonosis case, an Animal and Plant Heath Authority spokesperson said: “The risk to human health remains low. While the identification of this case does not represent a threat to humans, this rare event highlights the importance of timely and robust surveillance of viruses that can transmit between humans and animals.”

They continued: “That’s why we have several national and international programmes dedicated to the diagnosis, research and surveillance of influenza in pig populations, and continue to work closely with farmers, animal keepers, vets, the UKHSA and across government.”