French Company Stops Selling Tiny Fishbowls
2022-01-27
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1The big French pet care company AgroBiothers Laboratoire will no longer sell very small containers for raising fish.
2The company has a 27 percent share of the French market for products used by people who raise animals at home.
3But it said it would no longer sell any aquariums that hold less than 15 liters of water.
4They will only offer rectangular ones.
5The company said it was animal abuse to put fish in small bowls without added oxygen and filtration .
6Filtration is the process of removing small particles or waste from the water with a device.
7AgroBiothers chief Matthieu Lambeaux recently spoke to the Reuters news agency.
8He used the term impulse - meaning a sudden strong desire to do something - to describe why many adults buy goldfish.
9"People buy a goldfish for their kids on impulse," he said.
10Lambeaux added, "but if they knew what a torture it is, they would not do it. Turning round and round in a small bowl drives fish crazy and kills them quickly."
11Gold fish can live up to 30 years and grow to about 25 cm in large aquariums or outdoor ponds.
12But in very small bowls they often die within weeks or months.
13Lambeaux said gold fish are social animals that need other fish, lots of space and clean water.
14He added that having an aquarium requires some special equipment and knowledge.
15France is Europe's number one market for red aquarium fish, with about 2.3 million fish, Lambeaux said.
16In earlier years, AgroBiothers sold about 50,000 fish bowls per year at about 20 euros each.
17Germany and several other European countries have long banned fish bowls,
18but France has no laws on the issue.
19Lambeaux believes the use of fish bowls to be an anachronism - something that seems to belong to the past.
20He explained the company's decision further by saying,
21"We cannot educate all our customers to explain that keeping fish in a bowl is cruel. We consider that it is our responsibility to no longer give consumers that choice."
22Lambeaux suggested that the reality of fishbowls is sad.
23"There is demand for fish bowls," he said,
24"but the reality is that what we offer children is the possibility to see gold fish die slowly."
25I'm John Russell.
1The big French pet care company AgroBiothers Laboratoire will no longer sell very small containers for raising fish. 2The company has a 27 percent share of the French market for products used by people who raise animals at home. But it said it would no longer sell any aquariums that hold less than 15 liters of water. They will only offer rectangular ones. 3The company said it was animal abuse to put fish in small bowls without added oxygen and filtration . Filtration is the process of removing small particles or waste from the water with a device. 4AgroBiothers chief Matthieu Lambeaux recently spoke to the Reuters news agency. He used the term impulse - meaning a sudden strong desire to do something - to describe why many adults buy goldfish. 5"People buy a goldfish for their kids on impulse," he said. Lambeaux added, "but if they knew what a torture it is, they would not do it. Turning round and round in a small bowl drives fish crazy and kills them quickly." 6Gold fish can live up to 30 years and grow to about 25 cm in large aquariums or outdoor ponds. But in very small bowls they often die within weeks or months. 7Lambeaux said gold fish are social animals that need other fish, lots of space and clean water. He added that having an aquarium requires some special equipment and knowledge. 8France is Europe's number one market for red aquarium fish, with about 2.3 million fish, Lambeaux said. 9In earlier years, AgroBiothers sold about 50,000 fish bowls per year at about 20 euros each. 10Germany and several other European countries have long banned fish bowls, but France has no laws on the issue. 11Lambeaux believes the use of fish bowls to be an anachronism - something that seems to belong to the past. 12He explained the company's decision further by saying, "We cannot educate all our customers to explain that keeping fish in a bowl is cruel. We consider that it is our responsibility to no longer give consumers that choice." 13Lambeaux suggested that the reality of fishbowls is sad. 14"There is demand for fish bowls," he said, "but the reality is that what we offer children is the possibility to see gold fish die slowly." 15I'm John Russell. 16Geert de Clercq reported on this story for Reuters. John Russell adapted it for VOA Learning English. 17________________________________________________ 18Words in This Story 19aquarium - n. a glass or plastic container in which fish and other water animals and plants can live 20consumer - n. a person who buys goods and services