Source: Department of Conservation
Date: 03 April 2025
CITES is the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, monitoring and regulating the international movement of items made from protected species. CITES ensures the long-term survival of these species is not threatened.
Mark Ryan, DOC’s Border Operations Team Lead, says the recently compiled CITES statistics show the level of seizures and surrenders is returning to pre-COVID levels, with around 6,337 CITES-listed items seized or surrendered at the border in 2024 (up from 6,278 for 2023, and 3,060 surrenders and seizures in 2022).
“We are seeing seizures and surrenders begin to increase again, although we’ve not yet reached the pre-COVID levels – in 2019 for example, we had more than 8,700 CITES items seized or surrendered,” says Mark.
“Although corals, clams, and medicine still dominate the CITES items coming in, 2024 saw an array of exotic food items and leather goods carried by in-bound passengers or shipped by importers.”
Among the 1,144 food items seized or surrendered was a large volume of crocodile jerky – much of it from Australian crocodile farms – and a few cans of whale and bear meat with elaborate label art. Shark and turtle meat were also among the items seized or surrendered in 2024.
“Although the packaging of the bear meat suggests it may have been legal to purchase it in the country of origin, the importer still needed the correct CITES permits to bring it into New Zealand,” says Mark.
Fashion products made from the leather of protected species also feature in the 2024 CITES seizures and surrenders, including handbags, purses, and footwear made from python or crocodile skin.
Although some items may be worth hundreds of dollars and legally purchased overseas, this does not exempt them from needing a CITES permit when coming into New Zealand. Mark says CITES works at the level of species, and is not determined by the value of an item.
“We appreciate these types of fashion items and accessories are treasured by their owners, but anyone planning on bringing them into New Zealand should check the CITES rules and ensure they have the correct permit.”
Other unusual items seized or surrendered since the start of 2024 include dried sea horses, hippopotamus teeth, and the skull and tail of a lynx. CITES also covers items such as elephant ivory carvings, some insect species, and more than 34,000 plants.
More information
The main CITES seizure/surrender events in 2024 involved:
- Coral (raw) – 1,678 seizures/surrenders
- Medicine – 1,254 seizures/surrenders
- Shells – 1,253 seizures/surrenders
- Meats – 1,144 seizures/surrenders (most of these are crocodile jerky)
- Teeth – 163 seizures/surrenders
- Leather products (small) – 108 seizures/surrenders (incl. crocodile, alligator, snake, leopard or elephant leather bags, belts, boots, bracelets, hatbands, keyrings, shoes, and wallets)
DOC has an entire section of its website dedicated to CITES, and anyone planning on travelling overseas is urged to familiarise themselves with the CITES rules.
DOC carries out a range of outreach activities, education, and publicity work to support its CITES responsibilities.
New Zealand has the highest proportion of threatened native species compared to anywhere else in the world – more than 4,000 are threatened or at risk of extinction.
It’s not just a few unique species – 72% of our birds, 84% of our plants, 88% of our fish, and 100% of our reptiles are only found in Aotearoa New Zealand. Trade represents a threat for some of these species.
Contact
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Email: media@doc.govt.nz
