Believes in mink return in Denmark
During a political meeting on Thursday, which was also attended by a number of Danish mink breeders, aired several possibilities for a re-establishment of mink production in Denmark. The thinking is that what was given up as a basis for closing down the entire industry almost a year and a half ago, does not apply today.
The very reason for the closure – that it is a socially critical disease – is gone, said the chairman of Danske Mink, Louise Simonsen, during the meeting.
It writes Danish landbrugsavisen.dk on Friday.
Troubled process
It was in November 2020 that the Danish government decided to kill all mink in the country. The decision was made after a dangerous covid-19 mutation was detected in any of the animals. However, there was no legal basis for the dramatic decision at the time.
Since then, it has emerged that the authorities shut down the 100-year-old industry in 45 minutes, and that the Prime Minister received the papers for the meeting six (!) Minutes before the meeting. The Minister of Agriculture and Food had to resign shortly after this decision. On top of that, the issue of the final compensation scheme for mink farmers continues to rage. 700 mink farmers have sued the Danish state for NOK 600 million.
Professor: – You have a good case
During the meeting, it was pointed out that veterinary experts must now be involved in a new risk assessment on the keeping of mink in Denmark. This type of expertise was not involved at the time it was decided to phase out the mink industry. The fact that they are now involved means that Danske Mink believes that the industry can re-emerge in Denmark.
The mink chairman received support from chief physician and professor of clinical microbiology at Rigshospitalet, Niels Høiby. Nor does he believe that as of today there is any health professional justification for maintaining the mink ban.
– It has by no means been a dangerous infection. I think you have a good case, also in terms of health. For her, it is a decision that was made on the wrong professional basis. One might not blame that this decision was made. But when it finally emerged that it was taken on the wrong basis, one can blame that it has not already been allowed to resume mink breeding, the professor said during Thursday’s meeting.
Much that must be resolved first
According to the plan, the new risk assessment will be presented until 2 May 2022. If mink production is to re-emerge in Denmark, then a number of preconditions must be met. The newspaper points to both necessary for fresh breeding animals, handling the transport costs associated with getting mink shipped to Denmark, the supply, supply of mink equipment and not least the sale of skins.
Feed expert Michael Lassén presents calculations which showed that the final price, including transport, if it is to produce mink again today, will be just over 4 kroner per kilo. This corresponds to a total price of 184 kroner per skin.