Mink industry in Wis. gets warning

MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin animal health officials are cautioning the state’s mink producers about the dangers of the coronavirus following outbreaks among animals on several farms in Europe, spurring renewed calls from animal rights activists to ban the fur trade.

There are no confirmed cases of COVID-19 within the state’s $223 million mink industry, which is the largest in America. Still, producers say they’re taking precautions to protect their herds, the Wisconsin State Journal reported.

The virus that causes COVID-19 has been detected in mink on multiple farms in the Netherlands and research has shown ferrets, a close relative of mink, can catch and spread the disease in laboratory settings.