Respect for Animals Campaigns Director, Mark Glover, has today (7 June 2018) been in Belgrade countering the misinformation from fur industry lobbyists, who are desperately seeking to delay or cancel the upcoming fur farming ban in Serbia. Along with local campaigners, Mark presented the Fur Free Alliance’s Make Fur History exhibition to political figures and media representatives. Mark was joined by Stevan Lilic, Ljibjana Gledic, as well as Tamara Jevtovic, Snezana Milovanovic and Maida Sabeta from Freedom for Animals.

Serbia had already passed legislation banning fur farming due to come into effect in January 2019, but the ban is now at severe risk. On Tuesday, the agricultural committee decided to proceed with the deletion of the existing Serbian fur farming ban after a discussion full of false information supplied by fur trade lobbyists. In sensational and outrageous scenes, animal advocacy organisations were shockingly banned from proceedings. This decision will go to the Ministry for further procedure. The Ministry will create the ‘proposal’ which will then be delivered back to the parliament, probably in the early autumn.

The Make Fur History event was quickly considered to have been a success. Genuine political and media interest was generated and the misinformation by the fur trade comprehensively exposed.

The Make Fur History exhibition was launched earlier this year in the European Parliament by the Fur Free Alliance and Eurogroup for Animals. The exhibition exposes the facts about how real fur is produced and explains why more national bans on fur factory farming are needed across Europe.

Chinchillas are the only animals kept for fur in Serbia. The intense battery cage system used on fur farms deprives chinchillas from the opportunity to express their natural behaviour – such as running and jumping – and causes severe welfare problems. International studies have shown behavioral disorders, such as stereotypies, pelt-biting and infant mortality, are highly common on chinchilla fur farms. Learn more about welfare problems on chinchilla fur farms.

Mark Glover said:

This exhibition allows us to reveal the reality on fur factory farms, to present the facts about the animals bred and killed for their fur and to show why the fur industry belongs in the past. I strongly urge the Serbian government to keep the ban, due to come into effect in January 2019.