China's fur farms see opportunity as countries cull mink over coronavirus fears

Shanghai

AS MILLIONS of mink are culled in Europe amid fears they could spread the novel coronavirus, struggling Chinese suppliers are defying calls for their business to be banned and taking advantage of a surge in global prices for the prized fur.

Chinese mink farmers, rattled by a ban on wildlife trade early in the pandemic, are now resuming breeding of the slinky mammals, while traders have boosted prices by as much as a third as supplies tighten.

Authorities in Denmark, the world's biggest mink exporter, began slaughtering an estimated 15-17 million animals in early November after some tested positive for a mutated form of the coronavirus, raising concerns that vaccine-resistant strains could recirculate in humans.

Before the culls, China was the second biggest producer of mink fur behind Denmark.

Beijing has shown a zero-tolerance approach to new infection risks, tracking imported frozen meat and seafood and locking down communities whenever new transmissions occur. But it has taken little action against its mink farms, which researchers say number around 8,000 and hold about five million animals.

In the village of Shangcun around 180km south of Beijing, fur traders said their business was safe and would thrive as producers sought replacement pelts for coats costing US$10,000 or more each.

"I don't worry about getting the virus from mink fur because I'm sure the Chinese government will do all the necessary checks," said Wang Zhanhui, a shop owner.

Animal welfare groups around the world have urged a ban on fur farming.

"When it comes to public health risks, these farms and markets are much like the live animal market in Wuhan where the novel coronavirus is widely believed to have originated," said Jason Baker, senior vice-president at People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta).

Studies also suggest mink are particularly prone to coronavirus infection and could transmit the virus back into humans.

"If the objective is to reduce transmission, then yes, having these mink farms is a big risk because it makes it much more difficult to manage the epidemic and creates such big reservoirs of susceptible hosts," said Francois Balloux, a geneticist with University College London and co-author of a recent paper on Covid-19 transmission in minks. REUTERS