Editing Mink (section)

===Farming===
The [[Mink fur|American mink's fur]] has been highly prized for use in [[clothing]], with [[hunting]] giving way to [[fur farming|farming]]. Their treatment on fur farms has been a focus of [[animal rights]] and [[animal welfare]] [[activism]].<ref name="allbusiness.com"/> American mink have established populations in Europe (including Great Britain) and South America, after being released from mink farms by animal rights activists, or otherwise escaping from captivity.<ref name="BBC News"/> In the UK, under the [[Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981]], it is illegal to release mink into the wild.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1981/69 |title=Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 |website=Legislation.gov.uk |access-date=2017-02-28}}</ref> In some countries, any live mink caught in traps must be humanely killed.<ref name="gwct.org.uk"/>

In February 2022, the US House of Representatives passed a ban on commercial mink farming following the global SARS-CoV-2 outbreak on mink farms, however it did not pass in the Senate so did not become law.<ref name=":02">{{Cite news |date=February 4, 2022 |title=U.S. House Passes Sweeping Ban on Mink Farming Citing Cruelty and Contagion Risks: Legislation comes after hundreds of mink farms experience SARS-CoV-2 Outbreaks |work=NASDAQ OMX's News Release Distribution Channel |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/2625297627 |access-date=February 23, 2023|id={{ProQuest|2625297627}} }}</ref> The ban was attempted to be enacted in an effort to protect public health in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Mink farms pose the risk of producing SARS-CoV-2 variants that could be transmitted to humans. The cramped living conditions along with the high volume of immunosuppressed mink inhabiting the farms creates a highly hospitable environment for the SARS-CoV-2 virus.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Chua |first=Jasmine |date=July 20, 2021 |title=Mackage Owner Gives Fur the Boot |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/2553397514 |journal=Sourcing Journal (Online) |id={{ProQuest|2553397514}} |via=Proquest}}</ref> There have been approximately 6.1 million mink infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus, with three variants traced back to farms in the U.S, France, and Denmark.<ref name=":02" />

==== Ireland ====
There are three mink farms in Ireland, in Donegal, Kerry, and Laois. Mink farming was introduced into the country by two veterinarians. Three thousand mink were released by campaigners into the wild from a farm in the 1960s. It is estimated that there are 33,500 wild mink in Ireland.<ref>[https://m.independent.ie/business/farming/news/calls-for-irish-minks-to-be-culled-amid-covid-19-concerns-39730573.html Calls for Irish minks to be culled amid Covid-19 concerns] Irish Independent, 2020-11-10.</ref>

The [[Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine|Irish Department of Agriculture]] stated in November 2020 saying that the [[Department of Health (Ireland)|Department of Health]] had advised, following the detection of coronavirus among animals on a Danish mink farm, that the roughly 120,000 farmed Irish mink should be culled. Mink farming was already due to be discontinued under the 2020 Programme for Government but the coronavirus risk had expedited the closure of the industry.<ref>[https://m.independent.ie/business/farming/news/farming-news/irelands-mink-population-to-be-culled-amid-covid-19-fears-39766087.html Ireland’s mink population to be culled amid Covid-19 fears] Irish Independent, 2020-11-19.</ref>

==== Denmark ====
{{main|Mink industry in Denmark}}