Denmark to ban mink farming in government U-turn

Mink farming will end in Denmark by August 2029 after the administration decided to drop aims to pursue an exemption to an EU-wide ban on the practice.

Key points

• Nevertheless, the current coalition administration, elected in June 2026, reversed this decision and decided not to proceed with the application on Friday.
• Danish Nature Minister Christian Rabjerg Madsen remarked the administration had chosen animal welfare.
• Social Democrat MP Brigitte Vind remarked it was "a good day for animal welfare".
• The ban is due to come into effect on 7 August next year, and is followed by a two-year transition period to phase out the practice.
• Nevertheless, its production has slipped behind that of other countries, such as Poland and China, over recent years.

Denmark was once the largest producer of mink fur in the world, but the industry has declined due to global bans on fur farming, a decline in the fur trade and an earlier outbreak of a Covid strain in the nation's mink population.

Notably, the ban is due to come into effect on 7 August next year, and is followed by a two-year transition period to phase out the practice.

"A business should not continue just since it has existed for a long time. It should additionally produce sense for society, for the economy and for the animals, " he noted.

Notably, the Danish administration had initially sought an exemption for its mink industry when the EU went on the mammal to its list of invasive species in 2025, prohibiting individuals from keeping them.

"It is absolutely the right decision not to apply for a special scheme for mink breeding in Denmark, " she remarked.

In practice, the Danish Mink Association. It represents breeders, has been approached for comment.

Denmark is one of the few European countries to still produce mink fur, one of the more common pelts applied in making fur garments.

When the administration ordered a mass cull of mink after a mutated strain of Covid-19 was identified in the animals, the industry faced a crisis during the coronavirus pandemic. Approximately 15 million were killed.

At the time, the country had massive export markets to China and Hong Kong. The administration afterwards admitted it had no legal basis for the culling. There are now approximately 15, 000 mink left in Denmark.

No costs have yet been determined for closing Denmark's seven remaining mink farms, but an animal welfare spokesperson for one of the governing coalition parties previously estimated it would be around 14m Danish krone (£1.56m), local media report, but the final amount could be higher.

For context, the wearing of fur is a controversial subject within fashion circles, with publications and fashion brands choosing not to employ or promote it a number of years ago.

But it re-entered the spotlight last year, with celebrities and fashionistas wearing both vintage and so-called faux fur.

Taken together, the developments around denmark to ban mink farming in government U point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.