Eastern European buyers are back and new buyers from China are showing up in record numbers, he said. Ninety-six per cent of fur at the North Bay sale was sold. Fox, coyote and raccoon are especially popular as trim on the collars and hoods of high-fashion apparel this year. China is buying unprecedented amounts of North American mink and beaver. A big concern he sees for the future is the aging trapper population.
Most trappers are older and very few young people are taking their place as they retire.
Duncanson said soaring gas costs and flat fur prices give young people little incentive to enter the industry. Unless the situation can be turned around, it's possible there could be great fur prices five years down the road but no one to supply pelts. He said his group tries to entice young people to start trapping but finds the competition with video games and cable TV daunting. Academics and politicians love to tell us the answer to this question, but we're interested in how Canadians see themselves.