South Africa's big cat industry ‘out-of-control’, campaigners warn
South Africa, with its weak regulations on the breeding, trade, and movement of non-native species, has become the world's largest exporter of big cats and their parts to Asian countries.
Photo: Chad McGregger
Criminal networks in South Africa are profiting from the illegal trade of big cats and their body parts, due to the country’s ineffective regulations, according to a new report by the global animal welfare organization Four Paws.
South Africa is the world’s largest exporter of big cats and their parts from commercial big cat farms to Asian countries, some of which are hotspots for consumer demand for big cat parts used in traditional medicines and luxury items.
More than 3,500 live animals and 34,000 body parts have been exported over the last 20 years, according to the CITES trade database. However, Four Paws warns that the actual number of big cats and body parts exported each year is likely much higher due to poor tracking and oversight.
A new report by the organization reveals 30 documented incidents of illegal trade and trafficking involving big cats or their parts within South Africa—or allegedly originating from the country—between 2018 and 2024. In one case from 2024, authorities arrested a South African man and a notorious Vietnamese trafficker for attempting to illegally sell six lions. The research also identified 103 locations where tigers were either held in captivity in 2023 or 2024 or had been confined within the previous three years.
Due to South Africa’s ineffective regulations surrounding the breeding, trade, and movement of non-native species, the farming of tigers has flourished, with the country now home to the largest number of tiger farms outside of Asia.
Photo: Aaron Gekoski/Four Paws
The report also identifies multiple networks that operate within the big cat industry. Some networks solely breed tigers to supply illegal wildlife markets in Asia, using their own export companies to handle these transports. Others operate large breeding facilities focusing on public interactions with big cats while also trafficking live animals and bones. Some even offer ‘end-to-end' services, managing every step from purchase, preparing legal and forged documents, to the transport of the animals.
Four Paws is calling for the complete closure of the big cat industry by 2030.
“The crimes of the big cat industry go mostly unnoticed because South Africa lacks countrywide regulations to control and monitor breeding facilities. Many authorities do not even keep a registry of births and deaths of tigers in captivity, making it impossible to track exact numbers of this non-native species.
“This plays into the hands of criminal networks, who take advantage of legal loopholes and get the opportunity to collaborate with commercial facilities, private breeders, and traders.
“It’s time for South Africa to cease its role in enabling this cruel industry.”
Tigers at risk
Classified as endangered, around 5,574 wild tigers remain, spread across 13 Asian countries, according to a 2021 estimation by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). While the global tiger population has grown by 40 percent since 2021, their current numbers are still just a fraction of the estimated 100,000 that roamed the wild a century ago.
Although the commercial trade in live tigers and their body parts has been banned globally since 1975, under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), it “remains one of the greatest threats to wild tiger populations”, according to the World Wide Fund For Nature (WWF).
The tiger trade also has far-reaching consequences for the conservation efforts of other species, warns Four Paws.
“The farming of big cats in South Africa triggers a dangerous chain reaction, speeding up the extinction of endangered species across the globe,” said Kieran Harkin, Wildlife Trade Expert at Four Paws. “Facilities claiming that big cat breeding supports the conservation of wild populations is misleading and undermines the real horrors of the industry.”
“Captive animals are exploited as tourist attractions and killed for profit, and wild populations continue to be targeted by poachers. Both captive and wild big cats pay the price for this profit-oriented industry.
“All five big cat species – jaguars, leopards, lions, snow leopards and tigers – will see even more significant declines in their wild populations if this exploitative trend continues,” said Harkin. “It is high time to act now”.
Four Paws are campaigning to ban all commercial trade of big cats and their parts from, within and to South Africa. Please sign their urgent petition here. In collaboration with Terra Mater Studios and Four Corners Films & Photography, Four Paws has also released ‘Dethroned’, an award-winning documentary featuring photojournalist Aaron Gekoski, that sheds light on and invites viewers to examine their relationship with big cats. Watch here.
We Have A Favor To Ask…
Species Unite amplifies well-researched solutions to some of the most abusive animal industries operating today.
At this crucial moment, with worldwide momentum for change building, it’s vital we share these animal-free solutions with the world - and we need your help.
We’re a nonprofit, and so to keep sharing these solutions, we’re relying on you - with your support, we can continue our essential work in growing a powerful community of animal advocates this year.
