Illegal trade in hides threatens industry
The illegal export of raw hides, mainly to Argentina and Peru, is threatening the future of the domestic leather sector in Bolivia according to local representatives of the industry, who claim that the shortage of hides is affecting local companies and forcing many to temporarily put operations on hold.
Speaking to local media president of the Bolivian Association of Leather Technicians and Chemists (ABOQTIC), Antonio Moreira, said that approximately 1,000 bovine, ovine and llama pelts are crossing the border illegally every day and that this activity is causing a “state of emergency” in the Bolivian industry.
Tanners, who claim that in recent months they have only have access to as little as one third of the normal volume of hides, have demanded that the government increases its efforts to control the situation but say that their complaints appear have fallen on deaf ears.
