You would never expect a good chef to have trouble in landing a job in China, a country famed for its cuisine and cooking tradition.

But this is the case with Zhang Xingguo, a sous chef with national special-class credentials.

Zhang, 33, has been sacked a dozen times and resigned on another 28 occasions over the past 13 years. His longest-lasting job was less than three months.

The reason leading to his job departures, he says, is not professional ineptitude. Instead, it was his conscience. He adamantly refuses to cook wild animals for restaurants.

Such animals are considered delicacies in some parts of China. Their relative rarity has made them a selling point at many restaurants that use them to lure in patrons and gourmets.

What Zhang has done offers us food for thought on animal protection, which has not been taken seriously until recent years.

The SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) outbreak in early 2003 suddenly awakened the country to the importance of animal protection and possible dangers of eating wild animals, with the virus widely believed to have originated from the civet, a delicacy popular in Southern China.

It is known that some of the world's past disasters, such as the Black Death in 14th century, originated from rodents.

The SARS outbreak, which resulted in human and economic losses, is a stark reminder that eating wild animals sometimes can be lethal. The lessons SARS taught us are probably not the last ones we will learn if we slacken our vigilance safeguarding wild animals as time goes by.

Dr Zhong Nanshan, a famous doctor in the fight against SARS, recently warned people not to lower their guard against a possible resurgence of SARS since research showed the corona virus contained in civets is rapidly transforming. Corona virus is the culprit suspected in leading to SARS.

He said that if civets are not closely watched and controlled, the rapidly changing virus contained in them could develop to a point where they could re-ignite a fresh SARS outbreak.

Promoting animal protection awareness is one way to eradicate the habit of eating wild animals. But what Zhang did reminds us that there is another alternative to protect the welfare of wild animals.

If all the cooks nationwide followed Zhang's deeds and stood united against cooking wild animals, a campaign that China Wild Animal Protection Association is currently waging, think what impact it would have on the animal protection cause in the country?

It is hoped that Zhang, the farmer-turned-chef and now crowned the "green cook," may inspire more of his fellow chefs to join his ranks.

And Zhang's story should be compelling enough for those who have the habit of eating wild animals to consider quitting this particular pastime.

(China Daily May 14, 2005)