In Finland, all minks are killed on farms where bird flu has been detected. However, the solution does not completely eliminate the risk that the disease becomes dangerous for humans.
Miika Koskela,
Greta Virranniemi
In recent weeks, the eyes of the world’s virologists have turned to Finland. Now there is a fear that a bird flu pandemic could start in Finnish mink farms.
The Food Agency has therefore ordered all minks to be killed on farms where bird flu has been detected. Currently, around 70,000 minks have been ordered to be killed.
The Food Agency plans to inspect all four hundred fur farms in Finland due to the risk of bird flu.
The Danish government decided at the end of 2020 to kill all minks in the country, which at the time numbered up to 17 million. The coronavirus had spread from humans to minks and spread in animal shelters.
The researchers speculated that the virus might mutate in minks. The fear was that it would infect people again, even more deadly and resistant to vaccines.
We asked the professor of experimental virology at the University of Copenhagen From Allan Randrup Thomsenwhat kind of advice he would give Finland to handle the situation.
Virologist: If minks are killed, it would be worthwhile to kill all minks in the country at once
Killing minks one shelter at a time is not effective in terms of fighting the epidemic.
According to Professor Thomsen, in terms of fighting the epidemic, it is better to stop all minks at once.
– If infections can spread from one shelter to another via people or birds, you may have to kill minks from one shelter after another. In that situation, from a biological point of view, it would be better to kill all minks in the country at once, Thomsen states.
According to Thomsen, the gradual spread from one shelter to another would give the virus time to mutate so that it could start to be transmitted from one person to another. That’s exactly what the experts fear.
– If minks are going to be stopped, a radical approach is the most sensible option, Thomsen adds.
The mutated variant would probably be more harmless than the current one
The mutated bird flu virus in mink farms would hardly be as dangerous to humans as the variant currently spread by birds, thinks professor of virology Thomsen.
The currently known bird flu infects people’s lower respiratory tract. There, the virus causes severe symptoms such as pneumonia
If the virus were to mutate to spread among mammals, then it would infect the upper parts of the respiratory tract. In the upper respiratory tract, the symptoms of infection are similar to the cough, runny nose and fever familiar from the common cold.
– I don’t think that the virus would expose you to a disease as bad as the current bird flu, with almost half of the infected people dying from the disease. However, it could become another circulating flu.
In Denmark, ending the mink cost almost three billion euros
According to the professor of virology, the economic effects must also be weighed in the decision.
The economic effects of culling minks must also be taken into account, virology professor Allan Randrup Thomsenin points out.
In Denmark, the cost to the taxpayers of cutting down the mink farms was estimated at just under three billion euros. Some entrepreneurs are still waiting for compensation for years.
Denmark’s decision attracted international attention, because the killing of the animals practically meant the end of mink farming in the country. The board’s decision was later confirmed illegaland the so-called mink crisis was led by the country’s minister of agriculture by Morgens Jensen get rid of
However, Thomsen still believes that it made sense to end all minks.
– We had a new virus that we didn’t fully understand, and it spread between facilities.
Thomsen likes to give direct tips to Finnish decision-makers struggling with the mink question.
– You should assess how likely it is that the virus would develop into a big threat to humans in mink farms. It depends, among other things, on the size and density of the premises. On large farms that are close to each other, the situation is the most dangerous.
Ending all fur minks would require a law change in Finland
At least the government has not presented the matter so far.
Prime minister Petteri Orpo (co.) stated last week that killing all fur animals is currently not on the table in Finland. However, the situation is constantly being evaluated.
The Food Agency can only order the killing of animals in shelters whose animals have been found to have bird flu.
If all Finnish shelter minks were to be stopped as a preventive measure, it would require a change in the law. In this case, the government would make a proposal for a change in the law, and the parliament would ultimately decide on the matter.
The interview was also given by the director of the Animal Health and Welfare Department Terhi Laaksonen From the Finnish Food Agency and an epidemiologist at the Danish Statens Serum Institute Tyra Grove Krause.
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