In recent days in Greece 4 other outbreaks have been identified, in addition to the first reported just a few days ago; and at least 16 workers are also infected
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The march of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus continues unabated even among mink farms in Europe. In recent days in Greece 4 other outbreaks have been identified, in addition to the first reported just a few days ago; and at least 16 workers are also infected. Investigations with genome sequencing are underway to understand the line of contagion, i.e. if, in addition to having introduced the virus into farms (the only certainty to date about the cause of infection in minks), the operators were in turn infected by minks (reverse spillover). In Sweden, the confirmed outbreaks have gone from 1 infected farm (reported on 23 October to the World Animal Health Organization) to 13. Investigations are also underway in Sweden to verify whether farmers suffering from Covid-19 have contracted the virus from mink . While the confirmed outbreaks in Denmark (where the government has already taken the decision to cull 17 million mink and ban their breeding for at least the whole of 2021) have almost tripled in just one month (283 to date compared to 101 on October 16) , even Poland (which with 6 million mink is the third largest fur producer in the world after China and Denmark) finally decided this week to start a screening with diagnostic tests: at the moment, however, only 200 samples are carried out on 5 farms of the 350 present in the country. (LIVE UPDATES – SPECIAL)
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An important start anyway – says the Lav -, considered that the category representatives and some
farmers protested denying access to veterinary services on farms to test their animals! The situation is now clearly out of control, all over Europe. Individual breeders are in no way able to guarantee biosecurity conditions in these facilities for animals
which they exploit for the production of furs. In Italy these days diagnostic tests are underway in
at least one mink farm in Abruzzo (Castel di Sangro), following an inspection by the NAS carabinieri, “but only after that the Lav – it is emphasized in the note – has denounced
violations “by operators in other facilities to the minimum biosecurity provisions (such as wearing personal protective equipment to avoid the introduction of the coronavirus among the mink population). It is highlighted that “despite the obvious and unstoppable
spread of the coronavirus among minks throughout Europe, and with some positive cases also in Italy as early as August (episode made public by the Lav), and despite the documented cases of human-mink-human species jump with a mutated virus (fact also reported by the European Agency for Prevention and the
Disease Control, ECDC, in the Rapid Risk Assessment issued on 12 November), the Italian government has not yet given any sign of wanting to permanently close these farms. The breeding of mink for the production of fur is not only cruel to animals but is now also dangerous for public health. The government’s inaction is irresponsible “. In Italy, 8 mink farms are still active, in Lombardy, Veneto, Emilia Romagna and Abruzzo and” each represents a potential reservoir for the coronavirus “, concludes the note from Lav.
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