WORKING WITH FUR
W E L FA R E A N D E N V I R O N M E N TA L S TA N DA R D S
INTRO
Fur comes from all over the world, spanning national borders and government appointed authorities. For that reason, every area has their own approach and solutions to maintaining and increasing the high welfare standards for which our sector is renowned. So if you are working with fur, you can be sure that we are a responsible sector that puts respect for animals and environment at the heart of our business.
INTERNATIONAL FUR FEDERATION The global fur sector is represented by the IFF, with member associations in over 40 countries around the world. Each of these has signed a strict Code of Conduct committing them to upholding the industryrelevant laws they fall under in their home countries. IFF takes a lead in improving transparency, traceability and communication in the fur sector and with other industries.
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FA R M E D N o r t h E u r o p e
A m e r i c a
C h i n a R u s s i a
O t h e r
P r o g r a m m e s
EUROPE F A R M E D There are EU-wide regulations governing minimum standards and guidelines for the farming of animals generally and fur-bearing animals particularly. The sector exceeds these minimums with the Welfur programme. Begun in 2009, an extensive consultation with 7 separate Universities established the Welfur protocols for mink and fox. Currently the scheme is being rolled out across the EU, with participating farms subject to frequent inspections and scoring from independent experts, where low scoring farms will be excluded from the scheme. The farms are assessed on 4 core pillars of good housing, feeding and health as well as appropriate behaviour of the animals.
NORTH AMERICA F A R M E D North American production is spread across the United States and Canada, with each country administering their own schemes to raise production standards. In the US, over 90% of mink comes from farms certified by independent veterinarians who mandatorily inspect the farms regularly. This percentage is increasing and the scheme is administered by the Fur Commission USA, the leading mink breeders group in the US. This certification is on top of inspections from the US Departments of Agriculture, Water Quality and Natural Resources. Canada has in place new codes of practice for both mink and fox farming with the support of the National Farm Animal Care Council and the Canadian Government. Individual farming associations have also been propagating their own herd health programmes with independent veterinarians while also targeting improvements in waste management, feeding practices and biosecurity.
CHINA F A R M E D The existing welfare regulations, the “Provisional Regulations on Technical Management of Breeding and Utilization of Fur Animals” were drafted by China Fur Commission (CFC), a member of the IFF and issued by SFA (State Forestry Administration) in 2005. The regulation includes guidance on euthanasia methods, cage sizes and feed and helped to improve the local standards, bringing Chinese industry closer to parity with other global production centres. In 2012, the SFA decided a review of the regulations was warranted to drive further progress in their standards. The CFC, as experts, were once again asked to undertake this important project.
RUSSIA F A R M E D The best known fur type from Russia is sable and is more generally taken from wild populations (+90%). This is governed by international agreements like CITES and AIHTS to make sure the populations are sustained and treated humanely. Those furs produced on farms are covered by “The Federal Law on Veterinary Medicine” as well as many others and benefit from the government support of the “The target industry program on the development of fur-farming in the Russian Federation in 2013-2020.”
OTHER PROGRAMMES Working concurrently with all of these efforts to improve welfare is the group IFASA (International Fur Animal Scientists Association) that develop best practices for farming globally.
FROM N AT U R E Apart from farming, the other way fur is produced is as a by-product of population management programmes, generally known as wild fur. Types of wild fur include popular varieties like raccoon, coyote and beaver as well as niche types like otter and seal.
AIHTS AGREEMENT ON INTERNATIONAL HUMANE TRAPPING STANDARDS The most frequent method by which wild fur is taken is by trapping and this is covered by the Agreement on International Humane Trapping Standards, the only international agreement in existence on animal welfare. It was signed in 1998 and includes Canada, the EU and Russia (with the US included via a parallel agreement).
CITES & IUCN F R O M
N A T U R E
IFF only represents organisations and businesses that take fur from sustainable and legal sources. Wild fur is taken within the bounds of CITES (Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species) that prohibits by law trade of endangered populations and tightly controls trade in species of concern. The fur sector also supports CITES by sponsoring an IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) position dedicated to supporting the agreement. In their words:
Since 2014 IFF has financially supported IUCN Global Species Programme’s work to deliver science-based expertise to international wildlife trade fora, such as CITES (www.cites.org), and to help support and deliver the work of the CEESP/SSC Sustainable Use and Livelihoods (SULi) Specialist Group (www.iucn.org/ suli), and this is a partnership IFF aims to continue in the future.�
DRESSERS AND DYERS The processors of furs operate to the highest standards and are required to comply with a variety of water processing and emissions standards overseen by their local governments. Beyond local legislation, any company that wishes to import into the EU is legally bound to ensure the finished product complies with REACH. REACH is a relatively new piece of legislation that is becoming the international benchmark of stringency for what concentrations and types of chemical are permissible for legal importation. The fur dressing and dyeing sector is represented by the IFDDA (International Fur Dressers and Dyers Association Ltd.) and can be contacted via email (bs@ifdda.info).
TRACEABILITY IFF is leading an international group of companies from across the globe, in order to implement an ambitious program of demonstrable welfare and environment guarantees, from start to finish. The Russian Federation is also trialing a system of RadioFrequency Identification (RFID) tags for unprecedented traceability that will soon be mandatory for all fur products sold there.
EN VI R ON M E N T The fur sector uses natural and renewable resources and takes great pride in its care for the environment. Real fur lasts for decades longer than fake fur and as well as its longevity, it is also completely biodegradable making it the ultimate green material. Farmed fur animals eat waste bio-materials of other sectors (e.g. fish and meat production) and their waste in turn is used to produce biogas fuels and fertiliser for yet more agriculture.
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