China demand threatens world donkey population

China’s demand for donkey skins to make a traditional medicine could wipe out more than half the world’s donkey population in the next five years, researchers said yesterday. Nearly five million skins are used every year to make ejiao, a gel believed in China to be a remedy for troubles ranging from colds to ageing, putting enormous strain on donkey populations around the world, Britain-based animal welfare group Donkey Sanctuary said in a report. Ejiao was once the preserve of emperors but is now highly sought after by a burgeoning middle class, with production growing 20 percent each year between 2013 and 2016, it said. There are currently around 45.8 million donkeys in the world.