Swire Shipping announces ban on the carriage of donkey skins 

In February last year, African Heads of State and Governments endorsed a continent-wide moratorium on the slaughter of donkeys for their skins at the 37th African Union Summit. The agreement was made in recognition of animal welfare concerns and the vital role donkeys play in supporting communities and economies across Africa. 

Millions of donkeys are killed for their skins each year, with the vast majority of skins exported across the world by sea and used to make traditional medicines and remedies. This decision by Swire Shipping - which comes into immediate effect on 8 May – represents a significant step in efforts to curb this damaging trade.

The move follows the announcement last year by Emirates that it was banning the transportation of donkey hides on its flights worldwide. We believe the actions of these two industry leaders will create momentum and encourage others in the transport sector to follow suit. Restricting the international movement of donkey skins will help protect dwindling donkey populations in parts of the world where communities rely on donkeys for their livelihoods.

Research commissioned by The Donkey Sanctuary and undertaken by the University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School and Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU) uncovered significant evidence linking the movement of donkey skins with other illegal wildlife trafficking and organised crime.

About 90% of the world’s cargo is transported in maritime containers. Container shipping is the dominant method used for the smuggling of large quantities of wildlife products, due to cost effectiveness, the ability to ship large volumes and heavier weights with low detection rates.

Shipping codes help mask the movement of donkey hides, with other wildlife products often hidden in their midst. For example, the World Customs Organization Harmonized System Code 410120 covers all equine and bovine-derived skins. Unscrupulous traders use the code knowing it discourages inspection, allowing them to conceal other illicit, *CITES-listed species such as pangolin scales, shark fins, tiger skins and elephant ivory in the stacked layers of legal hides.

Decisive action from industry leaders like Swire Shipping and Emirates to ban the carriage of donkey skins, creates impetus for robust transportation policies, screening measures and inspection procedures to ensure only legitimate shipments are cleared, ultimately halting illegal trafficking and other illicit trade in its tracks.  

Marianne Steele, CEO of The Donkey Sanctuary, said: “The inhumane and unsustainable trade in donkey skins acts as a trojan horse for illegal wildlife trafficking and organised crime, and poses a serious threat to global biosecurity and the risk of zoonotic disease.

“Swire Shipping and other leaders in the transport sector should be commended for their decisive action and we call on other cargo operators, both in shipping and aviation, to join the fight to protect the world’s donkeys and the communities who rely on them. In doing so they will also help prevent the trafficking of other threatened species.”

Susana Germino, Chief Sustainability & Energy Transition Officer at Swire Shipping, said: “We are proud to support the work of The Donkey Sanctuary by including a ban on donkey skins in our updated Responsible Cargo Carriage Policy. This decision underscores our unwavering commitment to sustainability and ensures that our operations do not contribute to any trade that is illegal or threatens the survival of donkeys, whether wild or domesticated.”