The Lion Park, in Honeydew, Gauteng, will cease breeding lions and offering lion cub interactions from early next year when it relocates to a new park in the foothills of the Magaliesberg Mountains.

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The park last month came under fire when a lioness mauled a tourist, who subsequently died from injuries.

“We wish to announce that lion cub interactions will no longer be on offer at the new Lion and Safari Park,” the park said in a statement on Tuesday. “Whilst lion cub interaction is still very popular amongst the overwhelming majority of our visitors, as the industry leader, the Lion Park has been unjustifiably targeted by some of the media intimating that it is connected to the canned hunting industry.”

The Lion Park said it was against a background of negative media coverage and the ongoing campaigns against it that the decision was taken.

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