China cuts import tariff on donkey hide

China today slashed tariffs on import of donkey hide as domestic supplies dwindled and the demand for the product soared for its medicinal value.
The State Council, Chinas cabinet, said the tax has been lowered from 5 per cent to 2 per cent, state-run news agency Xinhua reported.
China's huge appetite for donkey hide and meat is a multibillion US dollar business and the demand has raised concerns in countries where many of the animals used for transport and farm work have reportedly been slaughtered or stolen and shipped to China.
Gelatin from donkey hide, called ejiao, is used in traditional Chinese medicine to improve skin quality.

Donkey meat is also a delicacy in some parts of the country.
Sales of ejiao in China rose from 6.4 billion yuan in 2008 to 342.2 billion yuan in 2016, according to industry estimates.

At the same time, the country's donkey population has fallen dramatically as farmers have replaced the animal with machinery. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, China had nearly 10 million donkeys in 1996 and nearly half that number by 2015.
Recent reports said Pakistan is seeking to cash in on the rising demand in China for donkey hides.
A donkey hide now fetches about 3,000 yuan (USD 460), about a third of the price of a carcass and up from 200 yuan in 2000, the Xinhua report said.

Most of the world's 44 million or so donkeys are in Asia, North Africa, South America and some European countries.
The eastern Chinese province of Shandong is a major province for ejiao production, importing hides from Peru, Mexico and Egypt.
Meng Xianqing, senior executive at an ejiao manufacturing plant in Donge county, Shandong province, said the lower tariff was good news for the ejiao business.
"To others it is just a few percentage points, but to us it is gold," Meng said.