Mink breeders excluded from their compensation cases

The Danish government and supporting parties agreed to remove mink breeders from commissions that decide their compensation claims. This initiative comes after concerns over potential conflicts of interest were raised, as mink breeders influenced other breeders’ compensation cases. The media outlet Zetland revealed that breeders constituted the largest group within these commissions. Due to the change, the pool of potential commission members will be expanded. Breeders and industry affiliates can still serve as expert witnesses. Minister of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries Jacob Jensen reassured that this would not cause further delays in compensation cases. The mink industry came into the spotlight during the COVID-19 pandemic when a mass culling of 15 million minks was ordered out of concern for virus mutation. The initial compensation estimate in January 2021 was around 18.8 billion Danish kroner, which has now increased to 29.5 billion.