Ágúst Ólafur Ágústsson, a Social Democrat MP, wants the government to allow mink fur farmers to quit with subsidies, according to a report from RÚV.
Ágúst told the parliament on Friday that breeding minks for their fur was an animal cruelty that should have remained tight before. News of a mutated variant of COVID-19 in mink in Denmark is also a matter of great concern and a clear indication that this project should be completed.
“I therefore propose that the government enable a few fur farmers to cease their activities with capital,” he said. “Norway will ban fur farming from 2025 and many other European counties have already banned it.”
Samples will be carried out on Icelandic mink farms in the coming weeks, following news from Denmark that all mink on their farms would be destroyed due to a mutated variant of the virus. COVID-19 has since been found on nine farms in Sweden.
In Iceland, mink farming has been criticized for many years now. Furthermore, it has not even been profitable and has been kept afloat with government subsidies in recent years.
“I think environmental issues are not just about rocks and mud, but also about animals, and that has certainly been lacking in this country,” he said. “Let’s stop fur farming in Iceland. Fur is not a necessity. “
Source: The Nordic Page