Other events in Baltic States

Animal rights activists are asking the Estonian government to leave fur farms without support in the framework of the economic recovery package.

The board of animal rights organization Loomus on Tuesday turned to the government, Prime Minister Juri Ratas and Minister of Rural Affairs Arvo Aller with a request not to support fur farms under the European Union Structural Funds, that is state aid, representatives of Loomus said.

The EU has put together an economic recovery package that allows member states to pay a one-off compensation to farmers and small agricultural food businesses that have been hit hard by the COVID-19 crisis.

Loomus suggests that both the economic viability of producers and the real need of society for such products should be considered when targeting support measures. Loomus therefore calls on the government and the Ministry of Rural Affairs to use selection criteria that would exclude fur farmers and fur processors from benefiting from temporary EAFRD financial assistance during the COVID-19 outbreak.

The organization believes that public money should not be used to help an increasingly extinct industry that produces unnecessary products at the cost of animal welfare.