Kenya should do more to end trade in donkey meat
By Print Print, February 22, 2025The discovery of 15 slaughtered donkeys in Mbeere South, Embu County, this week suggests that there’s a thriving black market that threatens public health and rural livelihoods.
This isn’t an isolated incident. Just two weeks earlier, on February 1, some 31 donkey carcasses were found in the same area, pointing to an organised criminal enterprise that continues to operate with impunity.
These discoveries are deeply alarming. Unsuspecting Kenyans may be unknowingly consuming donkey meat fraudulently sold as beef, particularly in processed products like sausages and samosas where the origin of the meat used is harder to detect.
More significantly, this illegal meat sidesteps health inspections. Meat processed in clandestine slaughterhouses, without proper hygiene controls or veterinary approval, poses serious risks of foodborne illness and contamination.
While donkeys have never been part of Kenya’s culinary tradition, their importance to rural economies is undeniable. These hardy animals are crucial workhorses for countless small-scale farmers and traders who rely on them for transport and agricultural labour.
This continuing illegal slaughter threatens to decimate Kenya’s donkey population, which has already seen worrying declines that prompted the government to ban donkey slaughterhouses in 2020.
That this trade persists, despite clear prohibitions, suggests sophisticated criminal networks are at work. The meat is believed to be transported far beyond Embu’s borders, even crossing into neighbouring countries. This points to high-level organisation and the likely involvement of international players, particularly given the well-documented demand for donkey products in certain Asian markets.
The rise of this black market starting in the years before the Covid-19 pandemic coincided with the increased presence of Chinese nationals in Kenya, many of whom came to work on infrastructure projects. While it would be unfair to generalise, the cultural preference for donkey meat in Chinese cuisine has created a lucrative opportunity that criminal networks are eager to exploit.
The authorities’ current reactive approach—making drama out of sporadic seizures that are often prompted by citizens’ reports—clearly isn’t working. What’s needed is a deeper investigation that targets the supply and demand sides of this illegal trade. Law enforcement must work across borders, partnering with international agencies to track down and prosecute the kingpins behind these operations.
As for local communities, they are already playing their role by reporting the illegal operations. But citizens must remain vigilant and report suspicious activities around donkey theft and illegal slaughter. Eatery owners and meat processors must be diligent in verifying their supply chains.
To allow this trade to continue is to play with the lives and livelihoods of thousands of Kenyans. It’s time to shut down these criminal networks once and for all.