ANIMALIA: Majority of Finns oppose current fur farming practices

#Act4
Wildlife

ANIMALIA: Majority of Finns oppose current fur farming practices

29 November 2018
Animalia
News
In the midst of Finnish animal welfare law reform and some months ahead of the upcoming parliamentary elections, Animalia has announced the results of a poll* surveying Finnish citizens’ opinion on fur farming.

 The result is sound and clear – 69% of Finns oppose fur farming or current fur farming practices. Animalia wants to know how politicians will react to the survey and calls for the inclusion of the topic in Finnish societal debates, as the issues haunting the fur industry cannot be wiped under the rug anymore.

The attitude shift (the support for ban has increased by 10% since 2012) shows that Finns are now following the trend set by European citizens in countries where fur farming is still practiced. More than 78% of Norwegians and 80% of Irish citizens have increasingly negative views on fur farming. As a result, one country after another is pulling the plug on fur farms. Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany have introduced the ban recently, Norway has obliged to completely phase out fur farming by 2024, while in Poland, Lithuania and Estonia fur ban proposals are currently being discussed.


The species most commonly held at Finnish fur farms are foxes, minks and Finnish raccoons. According to recently published investigation, Finnish fur farms are the biggest producers of fox fur in Europe where around 2.5 million of them are reared and electrocuted every year for the global fur trade. Kept in small cages, animals are unable to express their natural behavior causing immense physical and psychological suffering. The opinion poll results confirm that Finns have had enough of this unethical business in its current form.

With more and more countries banning fur farming, the Finnish government’s support to the fur industry is looking increasingly isolated and outdated. Furthermore this opinion poll shows that majority of citizens now agree that fur production cannot be continued in its current form. “The attitude shift indicates that Finland will be next”, commented Veikka Lahtinen, Animalia’s Campaign Coordinator.

Read the full story here.

*The opinion poll was commissioned by Animalia and carried out by Taloustutkimus Oy in November 2018. 1,000 Finns were surveyed.

The post 'ANIMALIA: Majority of Finns oppose current fur farming practices' is modified from an article published by Animalia in their original language.