Yesterday afternoon we received a question from Annie:
"Isn't eating iguana meat illegal in Costa Rica?"
Answer from Eliza: Uh oh! You’re absolutely right. Because so many of the locals I met here reported regularly eating iguana, I didn’t think twice about the possibility that it might not be a legal thing to do. Then when I researched the topic, nothing turned up. In fact, to the contrary, I found a lot of info about the benefits of iguana-eating, nutrition of iguana meat, etc. So good job stumping the reporter!
But on your word, I took a second look. Because iguana has been such a popular meat here since time immemorial, hunting the animal in the wild has led to near extinction of the species in some places. I checked in with a local vet, and he told me that unfortunately, the law against poaching is virtually unenforceable — and thus largely ignored. A good amount of Costa Ricans think nothing of catching a wild iguana when they get a hankering. I guess that explains why folks I met were so casual about telling me they loved eating “chicken of the tree.”
Fortunately, to combat this problem, concerned locals and farmers have developed iguana farming programs, to raise iguanas that are legal for consumption. When I say “farm,” I’m not talking about the kind of large-scale agri-business that we have in the states. Instead, iguana farmers here raise hatchlings and let them live on their land. Because most of these iguanas are free to come and go as they please, they live off whatever they find on the land. They’re living the same as their counterparts do in wild, so their meat retains the benefits of natural free-range grazing. But they’re legal to eat. Iguana-farming has been commended by environmentalists and the Costa Rican government as a profitable method of land conservation because iguanas thrive in a natural environment, as opposed to other livestock which need clear cut fields on which to graze. It's also commended for species conservation because iguanas reproduce so quickly, farmers regularly release portions of their populations into other areas in the wild.
To be fully honest, I don’t know if the iguana meat that I ate came from a farm, or an illegally poached wild iguana. I only know that it came from the freezer of the grandmother of the girl who works in our lodge! But now, thanks to you, I do know way more about iguanas — and the legal logistics of eating them — than I thought possible. Just to be safe, though, I think I’ll stick to tofu.
Live large,
Eliza
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