Fur industry phased out due to Polish animal protection

A (partial) animal-welfare shift is underway in Poland: measures will reduce animal suffering, but not across all areas.

The President has signed the recently adopted parliamentary bill banning the breeding of animals kept for their fur. The ban will be introduced gradually: no new farms are allowed to be open, but the law sets a long transition period of up to eight years for existing farms to shut down, and promises compensation to those who close earlier.

This decision is a major victory for animal-rights advocates: ending the fur industry could spare millions of animals from suffering. This is particularly significant considering that just ten years ago, Poland was still one of the world’s largest fur producers and is Europe's largest supplier.

At the same time, President Nawrocki rejected another bill, the so-called łańcuchowa (“chain”) law. This legislation would have prohibited the continuous keeping of dogs on chains and would have required that dogs live in properly sized kennels and enclosures. According to the President, the original draft was “poorly formulated”: the kennel standards (such as size requirements) would have been unrealistic, especially in rural areas, and would have placed an excessive burden on owners. As a result, dogs may continue to be kept on chains, meaning the possibility of “continuous torment” remains — a decision many animal-welfare groups consider a serious mistake.

Because of this contradictory outcome, reactions from animal-rights organizations and the public have been mixed, making it difficult to reap political rewards from the move.