Two years after a snap decision was made to cull nearly 17 million mink in Denmark, farmers say the industry will not recover.
In late 2020, Danish farmer Martin Merrild said his mink were coughing and, like himself, were infected with COVID.
He had few symptoms, but in such early days of the pandemic, fear of new strains and mass infections was rife.
On November 3, 2020 Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen met with ministers and other senior government personnel.
They made a decision in an hour-long meeting that would later decimate the mink industry: All minks, both healthy and sick, were to be culled to prevent the spread of COVID.
The following day, Ms Frederiksen held a press conference and announced the decision. The action was carried out within the week.
"If they hadn't killed them on the 10th, they would have been well, and we would have lost approximately four or five per cent," Mr Merrild said.
"All the strong females, they survived [COVID]. They coughed for two or three days and then they were eating again."
Just days after the cull it was revealed there was no legal basis for the decision.
President of the Danish Agriculture and Food Council Søren Søndergaard was elected to the position on the day the cull was announced.
Beyond the point of recovery
Prior to COVID, the Danish mink fur industry was responsible for 40 per cent of the global market, exporting primarily to China.
Fur and mink skins from Denmark had a yearly export value of EUR 500 million — more than A$768 million.
Mr Merrild says the industry will never recover from the cull.
"In my opinion, there is absolutely no future for mink production in Denmark," he said.
The animals were fed fresh meat every day, so feed factories were built near farms to provide it. Now they're all gone.
The mink industry was looking for ways to protect breeding stock and genetics during the first COVID outbreak but it was too late.
"They have lost everything which they have built up, through generations," Mr Søndergaard said.
'A bad situation'
At the time of the cull, Mr Merrild was the outgoing president of the Danish Agriculture and Food Council so received a phone call from the Prime Minister's office about the cull — a day before the announcement was made public.
Mr Merrild says he is lucky as he has a diversified income with farming broiler chickens on his west Jutland property, but many in the mink fur industry are not as lucky.
"I know one situation with a mink farmer. He's just been working with minks since he was 10 and that was the only thing he's ever worked with," Mr Merrild said.
"He doesn't have any agricultural production besides that and well, he has really been in a bad situation, and still is."
Report blasts cull decision
A scathing report commissioned by the Danish Parliament said Prime Minister Frederiksen was "grossly misleading" during the November 4, 2020 press conference.
Ms Frederiksen has denied knowing at the time that culling the mink was unlawful, saying the decision was made on a "serious risk assessment".
The commission also said Agriculture Minister Mogens Jensen, who resigned after the scandal, gave "incorrect information" at the time.
The Danish Parliament retroactively made a deal to legalise the cull.
The findings of the report could result in past or present members of government facing official reprimands and/or impeachment for their actions.
The commission recommended 10 civil servants should face disciplinary actions.
The industry will also be compensated with approximately 19 billion Danish Krone, equal to $3.7 billion, paid by taxpayers.
Despite the decimation of the industry, Mr Søndergaard doesn't believe the decision was made with malicious intent.
"I don't think it was deliberate that anyone wanted to get rid of the mink industry," he said.
"I think it was more a panic decision.
"[It's] just unbelievable that so many people, from the top of our society, can make a panic decision.
