A year of driving change to protect Brazil's donkeys

Brazil’s donkeys are disappearing at a devastating rate. In just three decades, the country’s donkey population has collapsed by 94% – falling from 1.37 million animals in 1996 to fewer than 78,000 today.

Why are donkeys disappearing from Brazil?

At the heart of this crisis is the global trade in donkey skins. 

Driven by demand for ejiao, a Traditional Chinese Medicine, traders have turned to countries like Brazil after China’s own donkey population has been decimated.

This year, scientists declared a state of emergency for the Brazilian donkey, warning that the species faces imminent extinction if slaughter continues unchecked.

Beyond the animal welfare tragedy, this would mean the irreversible loss of a unique genetic heritage that has shaped rural life and livelihoods in Brazil for generations.

A once-in-a-generation opportunity

Brazil stands at a crucial moment. A national bill, awaiting Congress approval, could ban donkey slaughter and halt skin exports nationwide. If passed, it would end Brazil’s involvement in this cruel trade for good.

At state level, a separate bill in Bahia – where slaughterhouses are currently licensed – could close the trade’s epicentre.

How we’re driving change

We are leading a global taskforce to confront the donkey skin trade on multiple fronts.

Working alongside Brazilian scientists, universities, NGOs, public agencies and international partners, our campaign has intensified throughout 2025.

Key steps in the campaign to date have included:

• High-profile advocacy at Brazil’s National Congress: an exhibition titled ‘The Donkey is My Brother’ was held in the Congress building to demonstrate to politicians the true importance of donkeys to Brazil’s culture, though the work of well-known artists and notable speakers.
   
• Direct engagement with politicians, including parliamentarians close to President Lula and leaders of key committees, to secure commitment to vote to support protective legislation.
   
• Scientific and policy collaboration: we co-hosted the third international workshop ‘Donkeys of Brazil: A Sustainable Future’ this year, which brought together leading scientists, veterinarians,  academics and NGOs. At the close of the workshop the decision was taken to issue an emergency declaration, signed by 12 experts in veterinary medicine, economics, biology, and animal science; calling for the immediate suspension of donkey slaughter by the Federal Government.
   
• Public awareness and media campaigns, helping to shift public opinion and build pressure for change.
   
• Sustainable alternatives to ejiao: we are supporting research in Brazil into cruelty-free alternatives to donkey collagen, such as precision fermentation, which aims to end the need for slaughter.

The road to progress in 2026

Thanks to sustained advocacy and coalition-building, momentum is growing:

• The national bill has passed key Environmental and Agricultural Committees in Congress and is expected to pass its final committee before going to Senate for a floor vote.
   
• Three major public hearings with parliamentarians and official government bodies have forced decision makers to examine the crisis.
   
• Brazil’s Ministry of Environment and Climate Change presented a lab-grown collagen initiative in September as a strategy for ending the slaughter of donkeys, recognising Brazil as the first country in the world to invest into pioneering a solution.
   
• A multi-sector network brought together by the ‘Sustainable Futures for Donkeys’ workshop in Alagoas in June is working on long-term protection for donkeys and sustainable change.
   
• Research confirms the skin trade does not economically benefit Brazil. Findings from new preliminary research we commissioned this year into the economic impact of the skin trade in Brazil has revealed it is economically extractive – offering no benefit to the local or national economies.

The moment to act

With legislative momentum now firmly underway, the path to ending the donkey skin trade in Brazil is now clearly within reach - but the final steps are crucial.

The decisions made in the coming year by Brazil’s lawmakers will determine whether the country’s donkeys are saved from extinction or lost forever.