Denmark to euthanize all its minks for a viral mutation

let’s aim. denmark is the world’s largest producer of its skins / aFp

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen announced at a press conference yesterday that “all herds of mink will be wiped out – some 17 million animals – due to registering a mutation of the novel coronavirus in a mink which has spread to humans. “.

“The mutated mink virus may pose a risk to the effectiveness of a future vaccine,” Frederiksen said.

Outbreaks on mink farms have persisted in the Nordic country, the world’s largest producer of mink fur, despite repeated efforts by authorities to eliminate herds infected since June.

“All mink must be sacrificed,” he added, representing around 17 million animals, “both sick and those without any pathology,” authorities said.

This mutation does not worsen the complications caused by the coronavirus in humans, but it acts on the antibodies, reducing their effectiveness, which adds a problem to the development of the vaccine against the coronavirus, the Danish authorities explained.

“Continuing to breed these mink would pose a very high risk to public health, both in Denmark and abroad,” said Kåre Mølbak, head of the Danish Infectious Disease Control Authority (ISS).

The twelve cases of human transmission of the mutated virus have been detected in northern Jutland (west), where most of the breeding sites are concentrated.

Everything seems to indicate that this COVID-19, called group 5, is more deadly, so new monitoring measures and restrictions will be adopted.

According to the Danish Food and Veterinary Administration, 270 mink farms have been discovered with coronavirus, while 23 others are believed to be affected.

“The coronavirus has shown once again how serious illness can be,” said the prime minister, who said Denmark must face the situation “with action”.

The armed forces, the national guard and the Danish emergency management agency will help eliminate the mink, as the Danish daily “Jyllands-Posten” reports.

In Denmark there are around 13 million mink.

Danish health authorities yesterday registered 983 new cases of COVID-19 in the country.

So far, more than 51,000 people have been infected in the European country and more than 700 have died from the disease.

IN PROBLEMS

Last August, Danish health authorities confirmed that there were more than 60 cases of coronavirus among workers at a slaughterhouse at the Danish meat company Crown, in the town of Ringsted.

Because of this, they had to set up a mobile testing center where all employees could be tested for the virus every week.

In this country there are also a significant number of pig farms which, as this newspaper learned, are fed with soybeans that they import from Argentina.