(Rokas Tenys/Shutterstock.com)

All Mink Fur Farms To Shut In The Netherlands Due To COVID-19 Outbreaks

by Alix Coe | June 24, 2020

The Dutch parliament has voted to close all mink fur farms in the Netherlands, following multiple coronavirus reports.

COVID-19 has been detected at 17 of the 128 remaining fur farms in the country, with speculation rising as to whether these farms could be the original source of the global pandemic.

A ban on farming mink fur was passed in the Netherlands in 2013, with the intention of phasing out the cruel practice by 2024. The government is now moving to compensate farmers as they cease operations ahead of schedule.

“A Reservoir For Coronaviruses”

“The intensive breeding of animals on fur farms is an incredibly cruel practice that not only causes immense suffering to animals, but can also serve as a reservoir for coronaviruses,” said Joanna Swabe of Humane Society International Europe.

“The Dutch Parliament has said good riddance to an industry predicated on the out-dated idea that exploiting, depriving, and killing animals for frivolous fur fashion is acceptable.”

mink fur farms animals — *Farming mink for fur is now illegal in the Netherlands (PEnsell Photography/Shutterstock.com)*

Mink Fur Farms & COVID-19

In May, the Dutch government launched an investigation into the possibility that a farmed mink first passed the deadly virus to humans.

“On the basis of new research results from the ongoing research into COVID-19 infections at mink farms, it is plausible that an infection took place from mink to human,” revealed a government statement.

“It also appears from this research that minks can have COVID-19 without displaying symptoms.”

Are you surprised that fur farms pose such a serious risk to human health? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

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