Photos by: HSI
New footage from various fur farms in Finland, which are major suppliers of fur to the U.S. and other countries, reveals horrifying animal suffering. Foxes were found with raw, open wounds, infected eyes, and deformed feet. The investigation, conducted in late October by Humane Society International (HSI) and Finnish animal protection group Oikeutta eläimille, also uncovered poor biosecurity practices, raising serious public health concerns.
Among the disturbing findings were obese “monster foxes” bred for unnaturally large fur yields. The animals exhibited excessive skin folds and repetitive behaviors, which are signs of severe mental distress. Over the last decade, the U.S. has imported nearly $40 million worth of fur from Finland.
Finland is one of the few European countries where fur farming remains legal. Nearly all Finnish fox fur farms are certified under the SAGA scheme, which claims to uphold “the highest level of animal welfare.” However, investigators documented foxes living in barren cages, unable to perform natural behaviors like digging or running.
Brands such as Woolrich, Philipp Plein, Yves Salomon, and Fendi source fox fur from Finland. Despite claims of ethical standards, the conditions on these farms reveal the grim reality behind so-called “fur fashion.”
“The few fashion brands that continue to peddle cruel fur products from Finland, like Fendi, Woolrich, and Philipp Plein, are sadly out-of-touch with today’s consumers who want nothing to do with confining wild animals in cages for their entire lives only to be gassed or anally or vaginally electrocuted to death,” said PJ Smith, director of fashion policy for the Humane Society of the United States and Humane Society International.
“Because of investigations like this, people are seeing the true cost of fur and realizing how unnecessary it is,” continued Smith. “The fur trade is collapsing before our eyes and that day couldn’t come soon enough for millions of foxes, raccoon dogs, and mink.”
Fur farms have also been linked to outbreaks of COVID-19 and highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), posing risks to public health. In 2023, HPAI outbreaks on Finnish fur farms were traced back to wild gulls. New biosecurity rules were introduced, including mandatory netting to keep wild birds away from cages.
However, HSI’s investigation found widespread violations of these rules. On one farm, netting failed to cover the full length of the cages, and the decaying body of a wild gull lay beneath the foxes’ enclosures.
Efforts to ban fur sales are gaining traction. This year, Attleboro and Arlington, Massachusetts, became the 15th and 16th US cities to prohibit the sale of new fur products. California banned fur sales statewide in 2019, and federal legislation, the Mink Virus Act (H.R. 3783), was introduced in 2023 to end mink fur farming across the U.S.
In the UK, HSI’s Fur Free Britain campaign has gathered over 1.2 million signatures and support from high-profile celebrities. A draft law introduced in October 2024 seeks to ban the import and sale of all animal fur, expanding existing bans on cat, dog, and seal fur.
