The potential market for tiger products in China is enormous, but a vast majority of the Chinese public would rather have wild tigers than tiger-bone wine, according to new research.
The researchers examined data collected from a representative sample of Chinese living in seven major cities in China. The results show that while the Chinese public overwhelmingly supports that country's ban on selling tiger products, 43% of respondents admit consuming products they believed to contain tiger parts. Within this user group, 71% said they preferred products made from wild tigers to those from farmed tigers.
The authors say this confirms fears by scientists and conservationists that wild tigers would be wiped out if China reopens tiger trade as investors in tiger farming are advocating.
"We finally have data that show if China reopens tiger trade, all bets are off for the survival of wild tigers," said Judy Mills, Director of the Campaign Against Tiger Trafficking. "The remaining 4,000 tigers left in the wild would not stand a chance if demand were reignited among China's 1.3 billion consumers."
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TIGGER!!! XD
very goood picture
Tigger, haha.
I had a cat name Tigger who happened to be the least tiger-like of all my cats.
He was still a great cat.
It is a beautiful picture, isn’t it? I envy the photographer.
‘Where did you get the beautiful photo? May I use it in a little book I am making if we give you credit?Mary
Traditional Chinese medicine specialists now largely embrace effective, sustainable alternatives and have joined the fight to stop all trade in tiger products for the sake of wild tigers and the reputation of Chinas traditional medicine system.
I've heard that also. I think what's frightening is the fact that, as
long as there's a potential for consumer demand, some depraved,
desperate, or ignorant specialist out there will be willing to sell
tiger products. The population of China is so vast that even if a
small percentage of Chinese consumers are still willing to pay for
tiger products, and even if just a few Chinese medicine specialists
sell the products, then the tigers still may be completely eliminated.
The lifting of the current ban on trade in farmed tiger parts may cause a surge in demand for wild tiger parts that consumers say are better. Because of the low input costs associated with poaching, wild-sourced parts would consistently undercut the prices of farmed tigers that could easily be laundered on a legal market.
I do not think anybody should be commenting on photos when an entire species is about to become extinct. I beleive that Tigers should be moved to african reserves where they caan survive.