The World Says No to Tiger Trade
13 June 2007
(The Hague, The Netherlands) One of the greatest threats to the survival of tigers in the wild was averted today, after parties to CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) adopted a decision prohibiting the captive breeding of tigers for trade in their parts and derivatives.
Robbie Marsland, Director of IFAW UK (International Fund for
Animal Welfare; www.ifaw.org) expressed his delight, saying: “We are extremely
pleased that range states spoke up on behalf of their tiger populations in the
wild. Allowing the farming of tigers for trade would have been another
nail in the coffin for this flagship species.”
So-called tiger ‘parks’ in China have been commercially breeding tigers in captivity in the hope that the domestic ban on the sale of tiger parts and derivatives would one day be lifted. These farms mass-produce tigers so that their bones can be fermented to create ‘bone-strengthening tonic’, and tiger meat has until recently been featured on their restaurant menus. Meanwhile, tiger farm owners have been lobbying the government to reopen trade in tigers complaining that the upkeep of so many tigers is a financial burden.
According to reports in the media as well as the CITES Secretariat’s own mission report, tiger farming as an “industry” is the result of a bad business decision. One tiger farm owner was quoted in the mission report as saying that the decision to breed tigers for trade after the 1993 trade ban was “a speculative business exercise in the hope that the ban would be temporary.”
IFAW believes that allowing any commercial use of this highly endangered species creates economic incentives for poachers to kill tigers in the wild. The captive breeding of a tiger, for example, requires 250 times more of a financial investment than the pittance necessary to put a bullet in a tiger and transport it to market.
Six tiger cubs were recently orphaned in the Russian Far East and 36 tigers have been poached in the wild in India in the past year. Four of the six cubs are in a rehabilitation facility supported by IFAW.
Parties to CITES today sent the message that they will not tolerate a further deterioration of this situation by allowing the farming of tigers for their parts and derivatives.
So-called tiger ‘parks’ in China have been commercially breeding tigers in captivity in the hope that the domestic ban on the sale of tiger parts and derivatives would one day be lifted. These farms mass-produce tigers so that their bones can be fermented to create ‘bone-strengthening tonic’, and tiger meat has until recently been featured on their restaurant menus. Meanwhile, tiger farm owners have been lobbying the government to reopen trade in tigers complaining that the upkeep of so many tigers is a financial burden.
According to reports in the media as well as the CITES Secretariat’s own mission report, tiger farming as an “industry” is the result of a bad business decision. One tiger farm owner was quoted in the mission report as saying that the decision to breed tigers for trade after the 1993 trade ban was “a speculative business exercise in the hope that the ban would be temporary.”
IFAW believes that allowing any commercial use of this highly endangered species creates economic incentives for poachers to kill tigers in the wild. The captive breeding of a tiger, for example, requires 250 times more of a financial investment than the pittance necessary to put a bullet in a tiger and transport it to market.
Six tiger cubs were recently orphaned in the Russian Far East and 36 tigers have been poached in the wild in India in the past year. Four of the six cubs are in a rehabilitation facility supported by IFAW.
Parties to CITES today sent the message that they will not tolerate a further deterioration of this situation by allowing the farming of tigers for their parts and derivatives.
For media-related inquiries, contact:
IFAW Press Office
phone: 0207 587
6700
