Mink has become the only animal confirmed so far that can achieve cyclic cross-infection with humans.
Denmark, the Nordic country, announced on December 21 a one-year ban on the breeding of mink, and announced that it would exhumate the bodies of more than 4 million mink previously “earthed” and “cremation” and “innocuous”.
Denmark’s mink industry has been hit hard by the coronavirus
In the black land of China’s three eastern provinces, “mink”, “buy mink” and “wear mink” are absolutely synonymous with “hone” and “highness”.
However, the supply of domestic mink resources exceeds the demand, and we have to rely on the mink industry in several high-latitude countries such as Nordic countries and Canada, and Denmark’s mink is the most important mink in China. Source of supply.
Denmark is the world’s largest mink breeder, mink producer and exporter. It has about 1,100 mink farms nationwide, with a stock of about 15 million to 17 million mink.
In February this year, the coronavirus epidemic that swept the world spread to Europe, and Denmark was also affected by the epidemic.
Among European countries, the Danish government and citizens are relatively “regular” in epidemic prevention and fighting, and the impact of the epidemic on people is relatively light.
As of December 22, a total of 138,204 cases have been confirmed and 1,053 deaths have been confirmed in the country. Large-scale “human-to-human” community transmission control is good, perfect but insufficient “thickness” is insufficient. The medical and emergency ambulance system has not been burned down.
That’s why until the end of October, the main concerns of the Danish Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries and mink industry operators remained mainly concerned about the market and logistics.
The spread of the global epidemic and the response to the epidemic will lead to the long-term cut-off of international flow of people and logistics, making Denmark’s mink export channels unobstructed.
At the same time, a large number of professionals work from home, and various commercial and entertainment places are closed for epidemic prevention, which will also affect the sale of special clothing fabrics with “far more obvious attributes than thermal insulation” and the consumption attraction in specific consumer groups.
But the problem soon “disseded”: At the end of October and early November, Denmark found a series of mutations in the novel coronavirus, and mink at several mink farms were found to be infected with the novel coronavirus.
And there are increasingly obvious signs that Denmark may not only have “human-to-human-human-to-sable” but also “to-human-to-people”. This means that mink has become the only animal confirmed so far that can achieve circular cross-infection with humans.
“Mable” has become a bargaining chip of Danish bipartisan games.
On November 4, Danish Prime Minister Fraserricksen hurriedly issued an executive order announcing the nationwide slaughter of all existing minks.
Subsequently, it was reported that about 4 million mink killed had been “burially” to eliminate the risk of the spread of the epidemic – they were buried in the western town of Holstbro and On military land near Karup.
However, Denmark advocates environmental protection and animal protection. For a while, there were many voices “opposing the inhuman treatment of mink” and “protesting against the pollution of the environment by ‘mortuary'”, which made the government and the ruling Social Democratic Party headache.
At present, out of all 179 seats in the Danish Parliament, the Social Democratic Party holds only 48 seats, less than one-third of the total seats, and only five seats more than the largest opposition party, the Liberal Party. Up to six opposition parties have to be won to barely make up enough cabinet seats, and the cabinet base is fragile.
Therefore, since the election on June 5, 2019, the Social Democratic Party and the current Danish Prime Minister Fraseriksen have been cautious for fear that the collapse of the ruling coalition will lead to the collapse of the cabinet.
Along with the “sable scandal”, opposition parties such as the Liberal Party immediately seized the opportunity to accuse the cabinet of ordering the killing and “burying” mink without passing the legislative authorization of Congress, which is not only suspected of violating the law, but also “seriously damaging the welfare of mink breeders”.
Due to the situation, on November 18, Danish Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries Jensen announced his resignation.
He was also the first cabinet member to resign in Fraser Rickson’s cabinet since the establishment of the cabinet in 2019, and the Prime Minister himself made a dramatic “public tearful apology” to resolve the “mink crisis”.
The day after Jensen resigned, the Danish cabinet announced that it had completed the mink slaughter. Next, we will discuss compensating the mink owners and killing the “earth burial” mink. Is that all?
Of course not.
Who will compensate for the cost of “banning mink for one year”?
However, subsequent tests and statistics show that 373 confirmed human cases with “sable coronavirus gene mutations” across Denmark, including as many as 12 confirmed specific strains and basically confirmed as “mink descendants”. The crisis of “mink infection with the epidemic” has been exposed.
Although the cabinet announced that “in view of the absence of new similar cases, the virus strain has become extinct”, this time the opposition and civil groups did not agree. They said that whether the “mink heirs” are really extinct or not, the “high-risk project” of mink farming should be suspended for a long time.
Moreover, it is still uncertain whether buried mink will be retransmitted to humans or other animals through soil and groundwater.
This time, the cabinet has also learned to be obedient: anything is fine, let’s go to Congress to discuss, vote, after legislation, it is not my family’s responsibility.
Therefore, there is a second round of discussion and game of “mink crisis”. Therefore, there were two resolutions on December 21: “banned for one year” and “civil burial to cremation”.
The question is, who is responsible? Who pays the bill?
The cabinet and the prime minister still said that “the poison strain that can lead to the extinction of the Diao heirloom has been eliminated”, which means that “one-year ban” is not necessary, let alone the intention of the cabinet and the ruling party. “It’s just that a majority vote in Congress decided to do so, and we have to do so”, in a word, the responsibility is to shifted.
But the issue of compensation cannot be avoided: Previously, official statistics showed that the government needs to pay compensation and subsidies of more than 10 billion Danish kroner (about 10.5 billion yuan) to mink operators for killing only one. The cost of “one-year ban” and the compensation required can be imagined.
On the 21st, Bryan, the new Danish Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, “deeply moved and apologized to the mink farmers for their efforts and endure humiliation” after the National Assembly voted to pass the relevant resolution.
However, I’m afraid that touching, apologizing and not having real gold and silver can’t be prevaricated.
The Danish Ministry of Environment claimed that “there is no risk of pollution for ‘earth burial’ mink bodies”, and there has been a release that “earth burial to cremation” may not be “practualized” until May 2021.
In the next six months, it is uncertain how Congress, public opinion and the public will play the game and whether the “burying” mink will cause a new epidemic spread. Judging from the current situation, I’m afraid it will provoke another vigorous “political epidemic”.
