The war on fur is heating up again

“We’re doing truly well,” says Akis Tsoukas, president of the Kastoria Furriers Association, describing the situation successful the fur manufacture successful Western Macedonia. These are words helium has not used for years.

Since 2014, fur had been experiencing a steady diminution successful the region, owed to geopolitical developments but besides due to the fact that Europe and the United States turned their backs connected the product, preferring the synthetic version. The biggest stroke came with the war successful Ukraine successful 2022, when exports from EU countries to Russia, which was Western Macedonia’s main marketplace absorbing 90% of its production, were banned. The manufacture survived thanks to subsidies.

In manner again

However, this clime has been reversing successful caller months, Tsoukas tells Kathimerini, thanks to two factors: the opening up of the Chinese market, which is expressing large involvement successful the product; and a trend that helium interprets arsenic a instrumentality to earthy fur. “We remembered the bully aged days. Actors and singers wear earthy fur, manner houses are asking for fur, the whole satellite wants fur,” helium said.

Tsoukas did not statesman to database the celebrated artists, such arsenic Madonna oregon Rihanna, who appeared wearing earthy fur astatine a large event, but referred to a much acquainted fig for the Greek public: the caller US ambassador to Greece, Kimberly Guilfoyle, whom helium adjacent invited to be the International Fur Fair, which has been organized successful the metropolis for fractional a century. He said indicative of the trend is that trade representatives from each implicit the world are expected to be the accumulation successful the lakeside city, including special missions from Japan and South Korea.

The initiative

While Tsoukas says helium is feeling optimistic astir the aboriginal of the industry, the European Commission is expected to determine whether to proceed with a pan-European prohibition connected the breeding and sidesplitting of animals for the intent of fur production. The committee has been called upon to respond to the petition submitted by the European Citizens’ Initiative “Fur Free Europe,” aft collecting implicit 1.5 cardinal signatures from citizens of the member-states.

The pan-European enactment Eurogroup for Animals, which is down the initiative, says that raising animals for their fur is unethical, arsenic the surviving conditions connected fur farms cannot fulfill galore of the astir basal needs deemed indispensable for the welfare of the animals, and that animals surviving successful farms person been observed to grounds abnormal behaviors, such arsenic repetitive movements that pb to self-harm and adjacent cannibalism.

In statements to Kathimerini, Nick Clark, wild animals programme person astatine the Eurogroup for Animals, said the study that the European Commission itself commissioned from the European Food Safety Authority, to connection a technological sentiment connected the surviving conditions of animals, is wide successful the following: “The bulk of the consequences suffered by animals cannot beryllium prevented oregon substantially mitigated within the model of existing farming systems, which means that there is nary standard of attraction that tin substantially amended the welfare of wild animals connected fur farms. Wild animals cannot explicit their earthy behaviors, careless of the size oregon structure of the cages successful which they live.”

A mink astatine a workplace successful Western Macedonia. [Alexandros Avramidis]

Subsidies

Clark besides raised an economical parameter, saying this is an manufacture that costs the European Union implicit €400 cardinal annually and is successful awesome decline, depending each year connected subsidies. “A akin downward trend is observed successful Greece,” helium said.

According to a caller study connected the system of the industry, fur farming successful the EU has decreased dramatically successful the past decade, successful narration to the broader planetary trend. “During the aforesaid period, the fig of fur farms successful the EU has decreased by 73%, the fig of leathers by 86%, the value of income by 92% and employment by 86-92%.”

The assemblage is besides signaling a downward trend successful Greece, which, on with Finland and Poland, is among the three largest producing countries successful the bloc. At the aforesaid time, however, for Western Macedonia, which has already been affected by the phaseout of lignite successful vigor production, fur, an enactment that has been contiguous successful this portion of the state for a century, is simply a cardinal source of income and employment, particularly for the regions of Kastoria and Siatista.

The jobs

“We are talking astir about 4,000 employees, 600 manufacturing companies, astir 70 fur farms and different 100 businesses progressive successful retail. It is the largest backstage leader successful Western Macedonia. How will they beryllium shuttered?” asks Tsoukas. “In 2019, which was our past champion year, exports reached astir €150 million. Who will bring this wealth here?” helium added, pointing that adjacent connected the contented of carnal welfare – mink, which are chiefly bred successful the portion – the farms person each the indispensable European certifications.

Tsoukas said Western Macedonia is mostly paying the terms of the EU’s embargo connected Russia. “In immoderate different case, we would not request fiscal support from anyone. Furs permission Kastoria and scope the largest manner houses successful the world.” At the moment, some radical are proposing a prohibition without bringing immoderate alternate improvement for the region, helium adds.

Irini Molfesi, president of the Panhellenic Animal Welfare Federation, which participates successful the Eurogroup for Animals, told Kathimerini that, unlike different countries, Greece has not yet brought this contented to the nationalist for debate, which needs to beryllium done by informing and involving each funny parties. This constitutes a missed opportunity, she said. “In reality, it is simply a assemblage that survives lone due to the fact that it receives subsidies – that is, it is an enactment that the state keeps live astatine the disbursal of different sectors. The government, the existent 1 and each government, should use the existent enactment successful Brussels to guarantee that the abolition [of fur farming] is done successful a coordinated way, successful a way that will assistance these regions successful the transition. In different words, it is an accidental for us present successful Greece to marque the transition correctly and with EU money,” Molfesi says.

According to data, 23 EU member-states person taken enactment done afloat oregon partial bans. The main countries that still let the signifier are Poland, Finland and Greece.

An ‘oracle’ from the commission

Leaks successful the European property study that the European Commission will not proceed with a prohibition connected fur farming. “Fur Free Europe” filed a ailment with the European ombudsman, expressing interest that the committee does not guarantee the balanced information of stakeholders successful the decision-making process. Clark told Kathimerini that helium is “extremely acrophobic astir the anticipation that the European Commission will take to notation to so-called ‘standards,’ alternatively of imposing a ban.”

Asked by Kathimerini, a European Commission spokesperson responded that from the appraisal and outer study it conducted to measure the interaction of antithetic imaginable options (a ban, imposing a regulatory model oregon taking nary action), the committee proceeded with a bid of consultations successful which each funny parties participated. “The results of the appraisal and the commission’s conclusions will beryllium communicated successful the coming weeks.”