(CN - HK) : English translation of article on EU cat and dog fur ban

[Guest guest]

*SingTao Daily (A16) 14 January, 2009*

 

* *

 

*Hong Kong** manufacturers to avoid effects of EU ban on cat and dog fur

trade*

 

The European Parliament’s ban on trade in cat and dog fur became

effective on 1 January, 2009. This means EU members are prohibited from

manufacturing, selling, importing and exporting cat and dog fur and

related products.

 

Animals Asia said that there were over 2 million cats and dogs being

slaughtered in China each year. Their fur is used for clothing and toys,

and some of it is exported to other countries labelled as “fake fur”.

 

Some fur hair-accessories sold in Hong Kong are made with cat and dog

fur, so consumer should avoid buying products that carry pelts. But the

fur, clothing and toy sectors in Hong Kong all said that the chances of

cat and dog fur being mixed in with other fur products was very low.

However, our reporter searched the web and found it was not difficult to

find cat and dog fur products for sale, with one Chinese auction website

claiming that they could cure rheumatism.

 

The US banned the trade in cat and dog fur in 2000, which directed the

fur market to Europe. Therefore, from 2006, the EU began discussions on

banning the trade.

 

According to research into the sale of cat and dog fur in Europe, the

pelts of dogs and cats are widely used in the manufacture of clothing,

accessories and toys. They are also being labelled as “faux fur” to

deceive consumers, which was causing much resentment among consumers and

animal welfare groups and eventually led to the ban on the trade.

 

Australia, New Zealand and Switzerland have also banned the trade, and

some members of the EU, such as Belgium, Denmark, France, Greece and

Italy had already introduced the ban before the EU’s move.

 

Mark Jones, Animals Asia’s Animal Welfare Director said the ban could

harm the world trading activities of cat and dog fur from the

perspective of consumer demand, so it was definitely good news for dogs

and cats.

 

Mr Jones said most of the factories for cat and dog fur were located in

China’s northeast provinces. He said Shangdong province was the biggest

supplier, and the trading markets were mostly in Beijing and Heibei. He

also said that as well as catching stray dogs and cats, manufacturers

also stole pets from their owners and locked them in tiny cages with

little food or water. They endured much suffering and were slaughtered

and skinned in various inhumane ways.

 

Fiona Woodhouse, Assistant Animal Welfare Director of HKSPCA welcomed

the EU ban on the trade, but she said “the ban only applied to cats and

dogs. I hope that the ban can extend to other animals in the future.”

She also said that Europe, the United States, Russia and China were the

biggest markets for fur in the world; she believed that the ban could

raise awareness of animal welfare among consumers and reduce their

purchase of the fur related products and minimize the demands.

 

According to a spokesperson for Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation

Department, Hong Kong has no law banning the trade in cat and dog fur,

but under the Rabies Regulation, Article No. 421A, importers are

required to obtain a permit before importing cat and dog fur products.

 

Mr Jones pointed out that there was a high probability that products

containing cat and dog fur were being sold in Hong Kong, especially at

the low end of the market. He said that it was very difficult to tell

whether fur was from cats or dogs, and it was better that consumers did

not buy any products containing fur and so avoided supporting the trade

unknowingly. A few years ago, Animals Asia purchased some fur

accessories, and laboratory testing proved that these were made from cat

and dog fur.

 

A Hong Kong clothing manufacturer who runs a factory in China said he

would not rule out the possibility that some raw-material suppliers

might mix cat and dog fur in with the “real fur” to lower the cost. He

said that even manufacturers would not be able to tell when they bought

the material. “For example, using fleece to make a ball of wool – since

the fleece is expensive, some unethical suppliers mix the fleece with

other fur to lower the cost, and some might use cat and dog fur. This is

just like putting hair into ‘fat choi’ – it is not uncommon in China.”

 

A fashion merchandiser said that for some export-brand fashion,

synthetic fur was used and the cost was higher than cat and dog fur.

“Using fibre to make synthetic wool is very costly if it is made to be

like real fur, in terms of the look, the feel, making it fire-retardant

and using non-toxic dye.” But she also said that because of the strict

export regulations and the requirement for test certificates, it was

difficult to use cat and dog fur disguised as real fur. She said that if

export fashion contained fur, it was usually the fur of rabbit, fox or

coyote.

 

Mr Lam, a clothing manufacturer in Hong Kong, said he had never heard of

cat and dog pelts being used. He said the chance of mistakenly buying

these raw materials in China was very slim, because manufacturers could

distinguish between the fur of different animals.

 

“If it is down, it will be either from duck or goose, the material comes

in a sack and it is impossible to mix it with cat and dog fur, as the

down is much lighter than cat and dog fur,” Mr Lam said. “Ninety per

cent of the fur used as trimming for fashion items, is man-made fur

since the cost is low; the low-end ones only cost HK$10 each. If it is

higher-end fashion, they will use real fur, such as rabbit or fox and

the pelts come in a whole piece. Therefore it is easy to distinguish

which animal it is from, plus real fur requires many sterilisation and

test certificates.”

 

Ms Yip from the Hong Kong Fur Trade Association said Hong Kong fur

manufacturers would never use cheap pelts without knowing the source.

Also as a professional fur manufacturer, one can tell right away the

quality of the fur, she said. “Our source is usually one of the auction

houses in Europe. Most of the animals are farmed in Europe and have

certificates. Real fur is usually from mink, fox or raccoon.”

 

Hong Kong Fur Association Director Mr Sun, who is also a fur

manufacturer, said he had never heard of the use of cat and dog fur in

the trade. “Ninety-five per cent of the pelts that are being used in our

industry are from farms, and some are from the wild, such as Canadian

water rat, Australian kangaroo, and those countries exported them with a

limited quota.” He also said that Denmark was the largest supplier of

fur, with almost 3,000 farms. The second-largest supply is Finland.

 

Toy manufacturer Mr Chiu said, about eight to 10 years ago, he heard of

some entrepreneurs in China using cat and dog fur to make plush toys, in

order to make them look real, plus the cost of cat and dog fur was low.

But he hasn’t heard of this practice lately. He believes that Hong Kong

manufacturers would not dare take this risk, “If exporting to the United

States and Europe, they have very strict requirements, all the raw

materials or end products need to have proof, so the manufacturers are

very cautious. They will check the background of the supplier, test

their samples and send the required certificates to their customers in

the US and EU for approval before they will actually manufacture the

products, as they will suffer a big loss if there is any problem when

they export the products.”

 

*www.taobao.com <http://www.taobao.com/> has many dog-fur products for sale*

 

Although a lot of manufacturers in Hong Kong said they had never heard

of the use of cat and dog fur, our reporter found that the auction

website in China, www.taobao.com <http://www.taobao.com/>, has a variety

of dog-fur products for sale, such as knee pads, waist pads, abdomen

pads, shawls, mattress covers, car-seat covers, boots and gloves.

Bidding prices range from RMB30 to 2,000. There are pictures and

descriptions of the products on the website, and some of the sellers

have even posted a note explaining the benefits of the products and

teaching consumers how to differentiate dog fur from other fur and how

to maintain it.

 

Mr Sun said people in northern China believed that dog fur could cure

rheumatism, therefore dog-pelt products were very common there. “In

northern China, you see dog-fur products everywhere. If there is a

market, there will be people manufacturing them. However I believe most

of them are made by small individual factories,” Mr Sun said. “The

farmers in northern China catch dogs and make products for their own

use, which is very natural.”

 

*Photo captions: *

 

Animals Asia bought some fur accessories in Hong Kong a few years ago

and laboratory testing proved them to be made from cat fur.

 

Coat trimmings might be mixed with cat and dog fur, but Hong Kong

manufacturers stress that 90 per cent of these decorations are made from

synthetic fur.

 

Animals Asia has launched an awareness campaign asking consumers not to

buy any fur products if they couldn’t distinguish between real and fake fur.

 

*Photos provided by Animals Asia: *

 

These rugs are made from cat and dog fur. Each rug is made from the fur

of 12 dogs or cats. The one on the far right is made from dog pelts, the

rest are made from cat pelts.

 

It is easy to find dog-pelt products online at this Chinese auction website.

 

*Angela Leary *Media Manager

Animals Asia Foundation

Tel: + (852) 2791 2225

Fax: + (852) 2791 232

 

Website: http://www.animalsasia.org/

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