The Fur-Bearers has obtained new documents through an Access to Information and Privacy request (ATIP) that reveals the federal government is providing millions of dollars in loans to Canada’s fur farming industry.
Since 2019, Canada’s fur farm industry received over $27 million in federal loans through the Advance Payments Program (APP). The APP is a federal program that provides agricultural producers access to low-cost cash advances, with the Government of Canada paying the interest on the advances on the first $100K (and first $250K for 2024).
The records show millions of dollars in loans provided to the fur farm industry every year. Since 2019, the Canadian government has paid over $200K in interest on these loans on behalf of the fur farm industry. Obtained through ATIP, the following table presents information on federal loans accessed by Canada’s fur farm industry.
The fur farm industry’s dependence on federal loans has previously been identified in a 2020 CBC article: A booming niche industry goes bust, quietly taking millions in public money with it. This CBC report found that since 2014, up to $100 million in public funding has been spent trying to keep the mink industry alive, noting that many loans may never be repaid.
According to briefing notes obtained through ATIP by The Fur-Bearers, Canada’s former Minister Agriculture and Agri-Food approved multiple stays of default for mink producers for outstanding loans in recent years. A stay of default is a legal pause that stops creditors from collecting debts or enforcing penalties when payments haven’t been made. In a 2022 briefing note, the request for a stay of default identifies “marketing challenges” as impacting mink producers’ ability to repay their loans.
The briefing notes can be downloaded here: A-2021-00024, A-2023-00003.
The 2020 briefing note observes that, “the mink industry has been experiencing low prices for five consecutive years,” with the 2022 briefing note stating that, “the future of the mink industry remains uncertain…”.
The briefing notes identify numerous challenges for Canada’s fur farm sector over the past decade: depressed prices, global oversupply of fur, decreased consumer demand, China’s and South Korea’s decreased participation in buying fur, low participation in virtual fur auctions, the COVID-19 pandemic, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine (with the resultant global sanctions reducing the number of buyers). These economic challenges are reflected in the sharp decrease in the value of mink pelts exported from Canada over the past decade, which saw a 97% decrease in the value of Canadian mink pelt exports from 2013-2023.
Canada’s fur farm industry has experienced a significant collapse in recent years and is currently on life support, propped up by public financial support programs. Canadian taxpayers are footing the bill for a financially unviable industry that they oppose, as a 2022 public opinion survey shows that 3/4 of Canadians support a national ban on fur farming. The federal government needs to answer why the fur farm industry is still able to access federal loans and other public support programs, given its clear economic unsustainability and overwhelming public opposition.
The federal government’s continued financial support for an industry that is a pandemic risk also needs to be questioned. In 2021, British Columbia banned mink farming over its danger to public health. Over 50 infectious disease doctors across Canada called on the federal government to ban fur farming in all provinces over the sector’s public health risks. Researchers have recently identified numerous high-risk viruses found in animal species farmed for the fur. These species include minks and foxes, species currently farmed for their fur on Canadian fur farms.
Despite calls from health experts and scientists to end fur farming, the federal government is continuing to use Canadian taxpayer dollars to financially support the industry.
TAKE ACTION!
Fur farms pose a risk to animals, the environment, and the public. It’s time for Canada to end its support of this practice. Visit furfarming.ca/take-action to learn more about fur farming and send a message to your Member of Parliament today.
