From the FT page:
Denmark said it would cull its entire population of up to 17m mink over fears that a coronavirus mutation in the animals that are farmed for their valuable fur could threaten the effectiveness of any future vaccine.
Danish authorities said a variant detected in a dozen people who had recently caught the infection from mink in the north of the country was so worrying that it raised questions of how well any potential inoculation would work across the world.
“Due to the discovery of a mutated infection in mink, which weakens the ability to form antibodies, resolute action is needed. It is necessary to kill all mink,” Mette Frederiksen, the Danish prime minister, said on Wednesday.
“The mutated virus carries the risk that a future vaccine will not work as it should.”
Kaare Molbak, Denmark’s top epidemiologist, said that in the “worst-case scenario, the pandemic will restart, this time in Denmark”.
Denmark is the world’s largest producer of minks skins. Annual production of about 19m skins accounts for €1.1bn in Danish exports, with China being the largest market.
The Scandinavian country has already culled more than 1m mink due to worries about the virus, but the latest action is a dramatic escalation in a country known for its animal products, including its pork. Danish police said the cull of 15m to 17m animals would take several days.
Ms Frederiksen, who is self-isolating along with much of her government after Denmark’s justice minister tested positive for the virus, said the decision had been taken with a “heavy heart” as she apologised to mink farmers for destroying their “life’s work”.
Denmark’s agriculture minister said the cull amounted to the de facto closure of the country’s mink industry for “a number of years”.
Magnus Heunicke, health minister, said the mutations had been found at five different mink farms. The people who had the new form of the virus were not severely ill but they did not respond positively to antibodies, he said.
“Studies have shown that the mutations could affect the current candidates for a Covid-19 vaccine,” he added.
Asked if the mutation could be a new “Covid-20” version of the virus, Mr Molbak said it would be for international biologists to make that call.
Denmark, like most European countries, has imposed extra restrictions in recent weeks as its virus infections hit a new record, due in large part to more extensive testing than in the spring. Additional measures will be introduced in North Jutland due to the mutated virus, the prime minister said.
Tage Pedersen, chairman of the association of Danish mink breeders, said: “We must of course not be the cause of a new pandemic . . . But the government’s decision is a catastrophe for the industry and for Denmark.”
Mink farmers will receive full compensation for the cull with Danish media suggesting it could cost up to DKr5bn ($788m).
Denmark said it would cull its entire population of up to 17m mink over fears that a coronavirus mutation in the animals that are farmed for their valuable fur could threaten the effectiveness of any future vaccine.
Danish authorities said a variant detected in a dozen people who had recently caught the infection from mink in the north of the country was so worrying that it raised questions of how well any potential inoculation would work across the world.
“Due to the discovery of a mutated infection in mink, which weakens the ability to form antibodies, resolute action is needed. It is necessary to kill all mink,” Mette Frederiksen, the Danish prime minister, said on Wednesday.
“The mutated virus carries the risk that a future vaccine will not work as it should.”
Kaare Molbak, Denmark’s top epidemiologist, said that in the “worst-case scenario, the pandemic will restart, this time in Denmark”.
Denmark is the world’s largest producer of minks skins. Annual production of about 19m skins accounts for €1.1bn in Danish exports, with China being the largest market.
The Scandinavian country has already culled more than 1m mink due to worries about the virus, but the latest action is a dramatic escalation in a country known for its animal products, including its pork. Danish police said the cull of 15m to 17m animals would take several days.
Ms Frederiksen, who is self-isolating along with much of her government after Denmark’s justice minister tested positive for the virus, said the decision had been taken with a “heavy heart” as she apologised to mink farmers for destroying their “life’s work”.
Denmark’s agriculture minister said the cull amounted to the de facto closure of the country’s mink industry for “a number of years”.
Magnus Heunicke, health minister, said the mutations had been found at five different mink farms. The people who had the new form of the virus were not severely ill but they did not respond positively to antibodies, he said.
“Studies have shown that the mutations could affect the current candidates for a Covid-19 vaccine,” he added.
Asked if the mutation could be a new “Covid-20” version of the virus, Mr Molbak said it would be for international biologists to make that call.
Denmark, like most European countries, has imposed extra restrictions in recent weeks as its virus infections hit a new record, due in large part to more extensive testing than in the spring. Additional measures will be introduced in North Jutland due to the mutated virus, the prime minister said.
Tage Pedersen, chairman of the association of Danish mink breeders, said: “We must of course not be the cause of a new pandemic . . . But the government’s decision is a catastrophe for the industry and for Denmark.”
Mink farmers will receive full compensation for the cull with Danish media suggesting it could cost up to DKr5bn ($788m).
