The developing market for alpacas has been restricted by lack of supply. There are approximately 26,000 alpacas in America and about 35,000 in Australia. Until recently, there has been little aggressive marketing of the animal, very few auctions, and very little national media attention for the alpaca. Yet both North America and Australia have experienced exceptional de mand for alpacas at very high prices. Canada has an active alpaca market, and many Canadians have recently purchased animals in the United States.
Many breeders retain their offspring, building their herds.
Mass production of cria, or babies, via embryo transplant is not feasible, since there is no available supply of suitable host females. The limited size of the national herds in each country outside of South America will restrain growth for some time to come. The U.S. alpaca registry is closed to further importation to protect our national herd, which will further limit U.S. herd growth. Demand for alpacas has increased dramatically every year since their introduction outside of South America. The American and Australian breed associations each have over two thousand members, while only a few short years ago there were none.