A picture taken 03 November 2005 shows w

PUSHKINO, RUSSIAN FEDERATION: A picture taken 03 November 2005 shows woman trying fur hats at a farm in Pushkino, some 40 kms from Moscow. From Soviet leaders to high society icons, a Russian fur coat was once seen as a desirable status symbol. But as Russians increasingly favor foreign imports, the Pushkino fur farm is barely surviving. The problems of Russia's fur industry are unrelated to ethical scruples of the kind that have put the industry under pressure in the West. It is the sector's inability to keep up with Western brands since the collapse of communism that is the real problem, observers say. AFP PHOTO / YURI TUTOV (Photo credit should read Yuri Tutov/AFP via Getty Images)