TESTING – FAF

 

 

The UK fur industry has experienced an economic decline over the past decade.

Both imports and exports of raw animal furskins to and from the UK have seen significant downward trends.

While the impact of the Covid-19 has contributed to this decline, the downward trend appears to predate the pandemic and can be explained by decreasing consumer demand and a series of fur bans by major fashion brands.

The UK fur industry has experienced an economic decline over the past decade. Both imports and exports of raw animal furskin to and from the UK have seen significant downward trends.

While the impact of the Covid-19 has contributed to this decline, the downward trend appears to predate the pandemic and can be explained by decreasing consumer demand and a series of fur bans by major fashion brands.

UK Public Opinion on Fur

Surveys conducted on UK public attitudes to fur demonstrate that UK public opinion has been consistently opposed to fur and fur farming. A range of public opinion polls conducted over a 25 year period from 1997 to 2022 show strong opposition towards wearing real fur, as well as the import and sale of animal fur.

Summary of UK public attitudes to fur, survey results 1997-2022 (adapted from Halliday & McCulloch, 2022)

YearSourceKey Results
1997Ipsos MORI poll87% of UK adults would never wear real fur.
2007RSPCA poll93% of UK adults refuse to wear real fur.
2010TNS PhoneBus poll95% of UK adults refuse to wear real fur.
2014YouGov poll (commissioned by FOUR PAWS)62% of UK adults would prefer to buy clothes from retailers that did not sell animal fur products.
2016YouGov poll (commissioned by HSI UK)88% of UK adults felt it was unacceptable to be able to buy and sell products containing fur from foxes and mink.
2018YouGov poll (commissioned by HSI UK)69% of UK adults support a ban on the import and sale of animal fur in the UK.
2020YouGov poll (commissioned by HSI UK)72% of UK adults support a ban on the import and sale of animal fur in the UK.93% of UK adults never or no longer wear fur.
2021YouGov poll (commissioned by HSI UK)93% of UK adults consider it unacceptable to keep foxes in wire cages
2021YONDER poll (commissioned by HSI UK)72% of UK adults support a ban on the import and sale of animal fur in the UK.
2021Defra call for evidence96% of respondents agree it is wrong for animals to be killed for their fur.
2022Focaldata poll77% of UK adults think the government should ban the importation of animal products such as fur. 

A YouGov survey from 2020 showed high levels of public support for banning the import and sale of animal fur, with 72% of respondents supporting a ban and 93% of respondents stating that they do not or no longer wear fur.

Further national polling in 2022 revealed that 77% of British citizens think the government should ban the importation of animal products such as fur, where the production methods are already banned in the UK.

In May 2021, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) launched a Call for Evidence on the UK fur market with the aim of using the evidence to inform future policy. A Freedom of Information request revealed that 96% of around 30,000 respondents to the Call for Evidence agreed it is wrong for animals to be killed for their fur.