As fur farming bans expand globally, transition support programs help mink and fox farmers shift to alternative livelihoods; experience from early-ban countries informs best practice.
Fur farm phase-outs represent a welfare policy intervention that can be implemented justly or unjustly depending on whether farmer transition support accompanies legislative bans. Welfare advocates who support bans while opposing farmer support contribute to economic disruption that increases resistance to welfare legislation. Transition programs that compensate farmers for the loss of a legally established business and support diversification to alternative livelihoods reduce resistance, improve implementation, and establish the precedent that welfare-driven agricultural transition can be managed fairly.