Last time I wrote about ancient and medieval use of donkey milk and other donkey features to aid human health and beauty. Donkey milk, of course has been scientifically shown to have human health benefits, but some of the other remedies – think eyebrow restorer and hair curling recipe – have long been forgotten. However fanciful those remedies seem to most people today, similar cultural beliefs and practices relating to the usage of donkey parts for health purposes exist today. This blog highlights one specific practice that poses a serious threat to the donkey’s survival globally; it concerns ejiao.
Donkey and Ejiao FAQs
- What is Ejiao? – A gelatine extracted from donkey hides.
- What is ejiao used for?
It is used in beauty products (face creams) and in traditional Chinese medicine where it is purported to help in a variety of cases including bleeding, dizziness, insomnia, a dry cough, and anaemia.
3. How is ejiao used? – It can be dissolved in hot water and mixed with herbs for drinking and is also made into a cake or snack bar by mixing with nuts and dates.
- Why is ejiao a threat to donkey survival?
The main problem is one of supply and demand: China’s increased demand for ejiao has outstripped the nation’s ability to source enough donkey hides, leaving their national herd numbers severely decimated. To meet demand Chinese merchants have been buying donkeys from other nations that have large donkey populations – especially developing nations on the African and South American continents. Some nations have legislated against selling donkeys intended for the Chinese medicinal market, but unscrupulous traders and uninformed donkey owners still contribute to the problem and the damage to donkey numbers has already been done. A 2019 article in the British newspaper, The Independent, estimated that the Brazilian donkey population would be extinct in five years if the demand persists.
- How many donkeys have been lost already to this practice?
China: since 1992 the donkey population has fallen by 72%
Since 2007 the declining donkey populations in the following countries are estimated to be:
Brazil – decline of 28%
Botswana – decline of 37%
Kyrgyzstan – decline of 53%
- What are the consequences if the practice of extracting ejiao continues?
In many countries, the loss of a family’s donkey leads to family hardship, where often the children or female members of the family must take over the donkey’s work.
Globally, if donkey slaughter for ejiao carries on unchecked, the donkey faces extinction. Donkey breeding is a slow process; gestation lasts around a year and usually produces only single births.
- What can we do to protect the donkey?
Education – at a grass roots level, subsistence farmers need to know that it is not a good idea to sell their donkey and to understand the importance of protecting their beast of burden from theft. This helps protect small land holders and reduce the supply of donkeys to the traders. NGOs already do this – Animal welfare charities have aid and education programs targeting donkey health and security.
Political Will – once governments in affected countries have become aware of the problem of donkey exports, many have introduced legislation to prevent this trade; however, it needs to be policed and enforced. There also needs to be a worldwide ban or strict restrictions on the movement of donkeys across sovereign borders that is effectively policed.
Breeding & Repopulation – need to establish breeding programs aimed at replacing lost herds in developing nations. This practice could be supplemented by a repopulation program of feral donkeys. Australia has a large feral donkey population and rather than corral and cull or corral and export to China, as has been proposed, Australia’s feral donkeys could help those who have lost donkeys to Chinese medicine.
Science – there needs to be more credible research into the actual versus perceived benefits of ejiao. If ejiao is indeed an effective treatment for certain illnesses, then efforts should be made to source the active ingredient synthetically by pharmaceutical companies in registered and licensed laboratories.
Sources and Further Reading
kb.rspca.org.au/knowledge-base/what-is-the-donkey-skin-trade-and-why-is-it-inhumane/
scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3039011/chinese-medicine-ejiao-has-left-worlds-donkey-population-crisis
independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/donkey-skin-ejiao-population-threat-china-brazil-a9242456.html
peta.org/about-peta/victories/us-company-removes-products-containing-ejiao/
abc.net.au/news/2019-02-03/donkeys-table-tennis-and-chinese-traditional-medicine-ejiao/10747228