Zoonotic Encounters at the Slaughterhouse: Pathways and Possibilities for the Control of Cystic Echinococcosis in Northern Morocco

Abstract

SummaryThis study traces the biosocial dynamics of Echinococcus granulosus – a zoonotic tapeworm spread between dogs, livestock and people – at slaughterhouses in Morocco. One of the most important parasitic zoonoses worldwide, this neglected cestode is responsible for a debilitating, potentially life-threatening, human disease and significant livestock production losses. Transmission can be interrupted, among other ways, by restricting dogs from eating cyst-infected livestock viscera. Recent epidemiological studies in Sidi Kacem province, northern Morocco, found that government-operated slaughterhouses were ‘hotspots’ for hydatid cysts in livestock and infection in dogs. An ethnographic approach was used to compliment these studies, exploring ‘how’ and ‘why’ cysts were being openly discarded. All seven visited slaughterhouses had low levels of hygiene, oversight and infrastructure. This was described locally as perpetuating a sense of ‘chaos’ that normalized (un)hygienic practices and justified the ignoring of state rules and regulations. However deference to ‘poor’ infrastructure, both physically and symbolically, served to under-emphasize local institutional logics, which were mediated by prevailing risk perceptions, economic practices and local socio-political norms. These included inter-departmental government relationships, the motivation of veterinary technicians, the political lobbying of butchers and market-based mitigation strategies. The study shows the importance of understanding E. granulosus from a biosocial perspective, and the need for more long-term, participatory and integrated ‘One Health’ approaches for neglected zoonotic diseases.

Engaging research with policy and action: what are the challenges of responding to zoonotic disease in Africa?

“…An increasing number of anthropological studies have revealed how complex social, cultural, political, economic and environmental determinants influence endemic zoonoses interventions. This includes studies on mass dog vaccination for rabies in Tanzania [39], community mobilization for locally appropriate sanitation infrastructure to prevent cysticercosis in Zambia [40], local use of veterinary drugs for trypanosomiasis and tick-borne diseases in Uganda [41] and the discarding of hydatid cysts in slaughterhouses in Morocco [42]. Other studies have explored risk behaviours for emerging zoonoses, such as bushmeat hunting and contact with primates in forest landscapes [43].…”

Meat Safety in Tanzania’s Value Chain: Experiences, Explanations and Expectations in Butcheries and Eateries

“…Next to individuals' roles in the meat value chain, their sense of agency occurs in response to, and is shaped by, structural conditions such as institutionalisation, policies and regulations, and socio-economic and political circumstances [42], which can play out differently in rural or urban areas. We posit, as do other authors, that better understandings of meat-sellers' own experiences and expectations can help to build incentives for positive behavioural change [8,43]. We also examine how meat-sellers perceive the future of food safety, drawing upon Høg and colleagues' concept of the "temporalities of risk perception" [44] (p. 1), which argues that sociocultural contexts and past experiences affect the ways in which people perceive future risk, whereby "risk which is calculated retrospectively is unlikely to encourage investment in biosecurity" [44] (p. 2).…”

Qualitative Research for One Health: From Methodological Principles to Impactful Applications

“…As a result, health communication campaigns (advocating cooking and better hygiene, for example) had limited impacts on culturallyembedded risk behaviors-highlighting that all interventions need to be adapted to cultural settings (6). These citations are examples of rigorous and impactful contributions from qualitative researchers to the control and prevention of zoonoses (64)(65)(66)(67), or the effectiveness of responding organizations (68,69).…”