Donkey forum in China to address thinning herd as demand for skins soars

All eyes and ears in the donkey world will be focused on the rural Chinese backwater of Donge county in Shandong province this week as dozens of international researchers meet to address the country’s growing appetite for the animal.

Donkeys are big business in China where their skins are boiled for gelatin used in various traditional Chinese medicines touted either as sex, beauty or longevity aids.

China’s demand for donkey skin is so great that it is endangering donkey populations worldwide.

According to one estimate, China had 11 million donkeys in the 1990s. Now it’s down to about six million. The gap between supply and demand has forced Chinese factories to import donkey skins from other parts of the world.

On average, about four million donkeys, half outside China, are killed every year to be skinned and turned into powders, tablets and face creams.