Any idea who buys the most hatter pelts and what country are all these hats physically made in?

Stetson America

so no cowboy hat sales in that city in FL , NY and CA ?

Stetson in America
Not sure the maker but orthodox Jews love beaver felt hats

I think where fur is banned like in isreal you can still wear it for religious purposes.

Try : https://www.5dhats.com/

Resistol is the other major buyer of beaver felt for hats.

My last one the blank was made by Biltmore in Canada then shaped and formed by Hatman Jack in Wichita

The people who pass such ban "laws" wouldn't have a clue there was critter fur in a felt cowboy hat. Not a clue...

Would love to see the look you get when you tell them much of the cheap hats are rabbit fur.

Could be , as last time I checked it was only $ .25 a pelt .
That was 40 years ago , so who knows .

I'm no hat expert but I understand the cheap stuff is rabbit and wool with nutria being upper middle grade with pure beaver being top of the line. The more beaver content the higher the quality.

Chinchilla mixed with beaver is tops.

Im not sure any of the other substitute furs have the little microscopic barbs that beaver felt does to hold the fiber together.

Even the cheaper rabbit fur felt must have some beaver right?

All hair has the scales to some degree but it's the number and aggressiveness of them that determines suitability for felt.

It's what makes wool scratchy or not (merino) and shrink when tumble dried.

Basically the hairs act like velcro hooking on each other and with moisture and heat they wad up tighter.