Japan's Legal Ivory Market Draws New Global Scrutiny as Seizures Rise

In a polished Ginza shop in Tokyo, 69-year-old Hajime Sasaki arranges carved Buddhas, chopsticks and other items—many made of ivory. While international commerce in elephant ivory is banned, Japan still allows a domestic market supplied largely by stockpiles imported before the global ban and occasional government auctions.

Evidence of Leakage

Conservationists warn that ivory from Japan sometimes leaks overseas, feeding black markets and undermining bans in neighbouring countries. Seizure records presented at a recent CITES meeting in Uzbekistan show more than 3,600 kg of Japan-linked ivory intercepted since 2008. Dozens of those interceptions were reportedly destined for China, and a 2023 seizure of 710 pieces bound for Thailand raised concerns that organised criminal networks may be involved.

Conflicting Views

Sasaki says his shop posts pamphlets in Chinese and English explaining that ivory cannot be taken abroad, and that many tourists decline purchases after learning the restriction. Still, conservation groups estimate that 10,000–15,000 African elephants are killed each year for their tusks—an industry critics say is helped when legal markets leak product internationally.

“China is doing their best to enforce their domestic ivory ban and to change public perceptions,” said Matt Collis of the International Fund for Animal Welfare. “But a neighbouring market that allows legal domestic trade can undermine those efforts.”

Policy And Practical Concerns

Japan maintains roughly a 250‑tonne ivory stockpile built up in part from two CITES‑approved auctions in 1999 and 2008. Tokyo disputes that its domestic market harms elephant conservation and says it enforces strict controls to prevent leakage. Experts, however, question Japan’s tracking system—which focuses mostly on tracing whole tusks—because the current trade is dominated by small, derivative items that are harder to trace.

At CITES, four African nations unsuccessfully pushed for a resolution to close all remaining domestic ivory markets. Japan also supported a Namibian proposal for a one‑off international government sale, a bid conservationists feared would spur demand; that proposal was defeated.

On The Ground

Sasaki reports modest domestic sales—one or two pieces a month, usually to older customers—while the Japan Tiger and Elephant Fund points to rising public awareness as a factor in weakening domestic demand. The debate continues between those who argue for strict curbs to stop leakage and conservationists who back limited, managed sales as a form of 'sustainable use.' Sasaki favors selling existing tusks to raise funds for conservation but condemns smuggling.

Bottom line: Japan’s legal domestic market remains a flashpoint in the global ivory debate. Authorities insist controls are strict, but international seizure data and expert analysis suggest gaps in enforcement and tracking that risk fuelling international black markets.