The Economics of Agricultural and Wildlife Smuggling
By Peyton Ferrier
Economic Research Report No. (ERR-81) 35 pp,
September 2009
The United States bans imports of certain agricultural and wildlife goods that can carry
pathogens or diseases or whose harvest can threaten wildlife stocks or endanger species.
Despite these bans, contraband is regularly uncovered in inspections of cargo containers
and in domestic markets. This study characterizes the economic factors affecting agricultural
and wildlife smuggling by drawing on inspection and interdiction data from USDA
and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and existing economic literature. Findings reveal
that agricultural and wildlife smuggling primarily include luxury goods, ethnic foods,
and specialty goods, such as traditional medicines. Incidents of detected smuggling are
disproportionately higher for agricultural goods originating in China and for wildlife
goods originating in Mexico. Fragmentary data show that approximately 1 percent of all
commercial wildlife shipments to the United States and 0.40 percent of all U.S. wildlife
imports by value are refused entry and suspected of being smuggled.
Keywords: Smuggling, illicit trade, SPS, quarantine, endangered species, CITES, ERS, USDA
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Updated date: September 16, 2009
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