05/23/22 The Time has come for Fur Free Europe!
A major civil initiative was launched to ban fur farming in the EU
- Fur Free Alliance and Animal Friends Croatia are seeking to collect a million EU citizens' signatures against fur farming
The international coalition the Fur Free Alliance launched an EU citizens' initiative „Fur Free Europe”. In the next year various organizations for the protection of animals throughout Europe, including Animal Friends Croatia and Eurogroup for Animals, are collecting signatures from EU citizens on a platform www.furfreealliance.com/fur-free-europe/ for a total ban on fur farming in the EU.
In June 2021, Netherlands and Austria submitted to the EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council information note supported by Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg and Slovakia, calling on European Commission to ban fur farming and fur products. A call for the abolition of fur farming in the EU for the purpose of animal wellbeing, public health and ethical reasons was supported by a total of 12 member states during the review of this document, and through the European civil initiative now numerous citizens can also express their opinion against fur.
Fur farms cannot satisfy the complex behavioral needs of wild animals, such as American otters, foxes, raccoons and chinchillas, and also cannot justify the confinement of domesticated species such as rabbits into small cages and their killing for fur.
Fur farming also has a significant negative impact on the environment taking into consideration that the processing and coloring of fur involve the use of toxic chemicals. Fur farming is ranked within the first five industries with the highest intensity of soil pollution by toxic metals. The fur industry represents a serious threat to indigenous biodiversity as well. Species such as American otters and raccoons, whose individual animals escaped from fur farms, formed populations in the wilderness and are considered as invasive foreign species that cause and have a considerable detrimental impact on European indigenous wildlife.
„There has never been a more urgent need for Europe to leave the cruel and unnecessary fur trade back in history. The fur industry is not only treating animals inhumanely for the product that no one needs but has also proven to be a fertile ground for the outbreak of infectious diseases such as COVID-19. We know that the public opinion in Europe is against the fur industry and European citizens need to take immediate action by signing this civil initiative”, said Joh Vinding, President of the Fur Free Alliance.
„A large number of countries, including Croatia, already banned fur farming with their national legislations. It really is the time that this very justified and necessary action is now made by the European Union”, concludes Animal Friends Croatia.
