No More Fur

19 December 2018 Body Délice

As you know, Body Délice stands against animal cruelty.

We support associations which fight for the rights of wildlife, pets and laboratory animals. We condemn laboratory experiments on animals (>> see article). And today, we want you to know more about the growing worldwide no-fur movement.

Did you know?

The fur industry kills more than 50 million animals a year!

Minks, racoon dogs, foxes, beavers, cats, dogs and chinchillas are mostly concerned.

They are cage-raised and then gazed, electrocuted, drowned, beatten or killed by another method, to obtain coats, collars or other fasion accessories.

Today, Denmark, the Netherlands (only minks fur farming authorized by the law) and China, are the three biggest fur-productors in the world.

Some countries already baned fur-farmings…

The United Kingdom was the first European country to phase out fur farming in 2000. The last fur farms of the country closed down in 2003.

In Sweden, the last foxes farms closed in 2001 and then, in 2014, the chinchilla farms were completly dismantled.

In Switzerland, only mink farms are forbidden but none others fur farms exist due to very strict conditions which make then not viable.

In January 2015, Wallonia (Southern Belgium) officially shuted down fur-farms. Then, it is Brussels which bans them in April 2017. In the Flanders (Northern Belgium), fur-farms will be officially banned on 12/01/2023.

Even if Macedonia never had fur-farms on its territory, this country enacted a law in 2014 to forbid them.

The latest country to have decided to ban fur farming is Norway. From 2025, all these farms (around 300) will be closed.

On the 20th March 2018, San Francisco began the largest city in the US to ban fur sales.

And these countries are not the only ones!
In Austria, Bosnia, Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia and Czech Republic, the ban of fur farms has already began.
Moreover, measures are currently studied in many other countries such as Luxembourg, Germany, Japan and Israel.

But in France…

As French, it is hard for me to say that my country is not pioneer at all in this no-fur movement…

The government slows down every procedures in order to not take action against fur farms, and even refuses to publish the exact figures about this awful industry, despite many associations’ requests.

Today, thanks to the National Information Center about Fur, we know that there are still 11 mink farms in France and more than 20 rabbits farms for both meat and fur productions.

In the Fashion Industry?

Over the past years, many high fashion houses decides one by one to waive on fur in their collections.

Perhaps for some, it is more a political choice than a real belief but at least, it leads to good decisions! So whatever…

Perhaps you recently heard that Versace won’t use anymore fur in their collections? Gucci and Michael Korrs decided to stop using furs in 2017. For Ralph Lauren and Giorgio Armani it was in 2016. Tommy Hilfiger is commited in this fight since 2007 in relationship with PETA. And for Calvin Klein, it began in 1994.

Again, I am sad to say that the French fashion houses like Givenchy, Chanel, Dior, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Kenzo, Lanvin, Louis Vuitton and Yves Saint Laurent are still using fur in their collections… Let’s hope it will change soon.

Fortunately, not only high fashion houses stand against fur ! There are many other free-fur brands: the Humane Society of the United States gives you a partial list here with many American brands, and here you will have a list with more French and European brands.

What to do?

First, don’t buy fur!

I already told you once, as a consumer you have the power. When people stop buying fur clothes, fashion industry will stop using it. Take a step towards your convictions. It is not trendy to wear fur, it is a murder…