Mink farms became major COVID-19 transmission sites during the pandemic, causing millions of animal deaths and raising questions about intensive fur farming welfare and biosecurity.
The COVID-19 mink farming crisis illustrated the intersection of animal welfare and public health in intensive farming systems. The decision to cull 17 million mink was made rapidly under public health pressure, with methods that prioritized speed over welfare - gassing in cages caused distress before death. Animals that had lived in intensive cage conditions their entire lives died in a mass welfare emergency precipitated by the disease conditions that their intensive management created. The pandemic accelerated policy decisions in several countries that were already moving toward fur farming bans. The Netherlands' phase-out, Denmark's subsequent ban, and similar legislation across Europe represent a policy shift with profound welfare implications for the tens of millions of mink previously farmed annually.