Tibetan antelope wool is some of the finest in the world. It’s soft, warm, and highly coveted by clothing designers. But the bloody business of harvesting this wool is putting the future of the Tibetan antelope at risk.
In recent years, there has been a surge in demand for shahtoosh, the name for the soft, delicate wool harvested from the Tibetan antelope. This has led to an increase in poaching of the endangered animals.
The antelope are killed for their wool, which is then smuggled out of Tibet and sold on the black market. A single shawl can sell for tens of thousands of dollars.
This illegal trade is having a devastating impact on the Tibetan antelope population. Estimates suggest that there are only around 200,000 left in the wild.
The Chinese government has stepped up efforts to crack down on the poaching of Tibetan antelope, but the problem persists. The high demand for shahtoosh means that there is a big market for the illegal wool, and this is driving the continued slaughter of these beautiful creatures.