An elephant conservation group has revealed how Chinese skin traders sell processed Asian

elephant skin for traditional medicine and jewelery.

Choi Si-young has the report.

A growing number of Asian elephants are being slaughtered for their skin as well as their

tusks.

British-based conservation charity Elephant Family has published a report highlighting

how individual traders in China skin elephants for human medicine.

They dry skin and grind it into powder to use as an ingredient in traditional medicine

products, which they claim cure stomach problems..

The traders also mix the skin with elephant fat to make a cream to treat skin infections.

And the elephant skin is used for other products too, like pendants, or beads for necklaces

and bracelets.

The Chinese traders sell the items through social media, labelling them in Chinese and

pricing them using Chinese currency.

In 2016, the conservation group reported its discoveries to the 17th meeting of the Conference

of Parties to the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna

and Flora in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Elephant Family's recommendations were accepted, but it says more action is needed to stop

the trade in products made from animals on the verge of extinction.

Choi Si-young, Arirang News