Denmark to ban mink farming in government U-turn
Once the world's largest producer of mink pelts, the nation's industry has declined in recent years.
Denmark will end mink farming by August 2029 after the government dropped plans to seek an exemption from an EU-wide ban on the practice, the BBC reports.
The ban is due to take effect on 7 August next year, followed by a two-year transition period, the BBC says.
Danish Nature Minister Christian Rabjerg Madsen said the government had chosen animal welfare over tradition. "A business should not continue just because it has existed for a long time," he said.
The government had initially sought an exemption for its mink industry from the EU-wide ban, but the current coalition government, elected in June, reversed that position, according to the BBC.
Social Democrat MP Brigitte Vind welcomed the move, calling it "a good day for animal welfare" and saying it was absolutely the right decision not to pursue a special scheme for mink breeding in Denmark. The Danish Mink Association, which represents breeders, has been approached for comment, the BBC reports.
Denmark was once the world's largest producer of mink fur, but its output has slipped behind countries including Poland and China in recent years.
The industry was hit hard during the coronavirus pandemic, when the government ordered a mass cull of mink. The government later admitted it had no legal basis for the culling, the BBC reports. At the time, Denmark had large export markets in China and Hong Kong.
There are now about 15,000 mink left in the country, and no costs have yet been determined for closing Denmark's seven remaining mink farms.
Source: BBC News — Top Stories — TrendWire reports stories in its own words; facts should be confirmed against the original source.