Would Nepal have gained a stream of revenue being only Hindu Kingdom of the world so to lure business in this industry? Please read below


A hairy problem

Posted by:
Economist.com | NEW YORK

Categories:
Markets in everything

Late last year, The Economist took the position that people should be able to sell their own kidneys. This raised many ethical questions about the concept of selling body parts. However, there already exists an active industry that involves humans in developing countries selling a part of their bodies to richer people in the west: the traffic in human hair.

The market for human hair, used for wigs and extensions, has been booming. Wearing hair extensions, once considered the domain of strippers, has become fashionable for celebrities and the like. Of course the extensions must be top quality--raising the demand for human hair.

Not all hair is of equal value. Most hair comes from China, but its coarseness makes it the least valuable. Chinese hair is difficult to process into the luxurious waves demanded by current fashion. European hair commands the greatest value; presumably, because most of the people able to buy the extensions are of European descent.

You can even buy hair with spiritual value. The Independent ran an article last month about the hair industry in Tirumala in Southern India. One of the largest hair distributors, Great Lengths International, claims to buy their hair exclusively from Tirumala, where the temples sell the shorn tresses of Hindu pilgrims. Hair from Hindu religious pilgrims has become a $7 million business. According to the article, Indian hair fetches a high price because it is malleable enough to look European. Indeed, Indian hair is enjoying something of a renaissance. Before the extension craze, one of the largest consumers of hair was Orthodox Jewish women, who wear wigs; when the source of much of their hair was discovered, it caused the market to drop. Extensions have brought it back again.

Of course selling hair is less drastic than an organ. But mightn't there be a slippery slope? During the last trip my local salon offered me eye-lash extensions—though they assured me they were synthetic.