Finland asks EU to exclude minks from new bans

The Finnish Ministry of Agriculture and Forests has submitted a formal application to the European Commission. The department is seeking a special regime for local fur farms. Helsinki wants national farms not to fall under the new EU rule. Since August 2027, the association is going to completely ban the content of American mink: this type of European regulators consider invasive.

The ministry warns that Brussels' tough measures will hit the countryside economy. There are 134 mink farms in Finland. Most of them are located in Ostrobotnia.

A response from Brussels is expected in December. Not ruled out. If the Finnish authorities receive a positive response, farmers will still have to issue individual permits and strengthen security measures.

In the summer of 2023, the industry has already experienced a difficult period due to the outbreak of bird flu. Then it was necessary to euthanize the animals en masse, and compensation amounted to 45 million euros. In 2023, the legislative body of the country did not support a public initiative demanding to close the fur industry, pointing to the threat to exports. Today, Finland is one of the 5 largest fur producers in the world and remains an important supplier of foxes and mink.

Earlier Yle reported that Finland may soon lose its wealth. Among the reasons is global warming: in the country it is 2 times faster than the global average, and significantly affects the forest industry. Authorities admit that adaptation is slow.

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