Denmark to Destroy Mink Population after Coronavirus Spreads to Humans

Denmark says it plans to destroy its whole population of minks² after the animals apparently³ spread the new coronavirus to humans.

Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said government investigators⁴ had discovered a mutation⁵ in the virus in 12 people in northern Denmark. The individuals are believed to have been infected by minks.

Denmark's health minister said that half of nearly 800 human COVID-19 cases in northern Denmark "are related" to minks. Denmark is the world's main exporter of mink¹ fur. Most of the fur is sent to China and Hong Kong.

Frederiksen called the situation "very serious" and warned that the mutation could make future coronavirus vaccines⁶ ineffective. Health officials said they found virus versions in humans and minks that showed decreased sensitivity to antibodies. They said this could make future vaccines less effective.

Frederiksen told reporters the mutated virus in minks could have harmful effects worldwide. "We have a great responsibility towards our own population, but with the mutation that has now been found, we have an even greater responsibility for the rest of the world as well," she said.

To deal with the problem, the government said it was necessary to cull⁷ the country's total population of 15 to 17 million minks. Officials said police and military forces would be deployed⁸ to speed up the process.

The discovery of the mutation was shared with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. The head of the WHO's emergencies program, Mike Ryan, called for scientific investigations⁹ into how the coronavirus is being spread between minks and humans.

"We have been informed by Denmark of a number of persons infected with coronavirus from mink, with some genetic¹⁰ changes in the virus," the WHO said in a statement to Reuters.

The WHO also provided a statement to the French press agency AFP. "In a few instances, the minks that were infected by humans have transmitted the virus to other people. These are the first reported cases of animal-to-human transmission," the statement said.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that coronaviruses "are a large family of viruses that are common in people and many different species of animals, including camels, cattle, cats, and bats."

The CDC adds that "animal coronaviruses rarely infect people and then spread between people." However, the organization said this happened with the new coronavirus, which causes the disease COVID-19. Scientists have said the new coronavirus likely started in bats and began spreading to humans at a market.

Danish officials say a total of 207 of the country's fur farms had been infected with COVID-19. Denmark already started culling¹¹ millions of mink last month in northern areas. The government has promised to compensate¹² farmers for the losses. There are more than 1,000 such farms in the country.

The animal cause group Humane¹³ Society International praised the prime minister for taking a necessary "and science-based step to protect Danish citizens." It said that such a large cull represents "an animal welfare tragedy." However, the group said it hoped that losing so many mink to the coronavirus will persuade fur farms to get out of the business.

Danish officials said increased restrictions¹⁴ and stronger contact tracing efforts will be ordered in parts of the north to help contain the virus.

Kare Molbak is the director at Denmark's State Serum¹⁵ Institute, the health body that deals with infectious diseases. "The worst case scenario¹⁶ is a new pandemic, starting all over again out of Denmark," he said.

Words in This Story

mutation – n. a change in the genes¹⁷ of a plant or animal that causes a difference from what is usual in that living creature

fur – n. the hairy coat of an mammal

cull –v. -to control the size of a group of animals by killing¹⁸ some of them

transmit – v. to pass from one to another

species – n.(pl) a group of animals or plants that are similar and can produce young

compensate – v. to give money or something of value in return for some action, loss or damage

trace – v. to try to find someone or who they have met by collecting and studying evidence

scenario – n. a description of what could possibly happen

1 mink   

n.貂，貂皮

参考例句：

• She was wearing a blue dress and a mink coat.她穿着一身蓝色的套装和一件貂皮大衣。
• He started a mink ranch and made a fortune in five years. 他开了个水貂养殖场，五年之内就赚了不少钱。

2 minks   

n.水貂( mink的名词复数 )；水貂皮

参考例句：

• Fuck like minks, forget the rug rats, and live happily ever after. 我们象水貂一样作爱，忘掉小水貂吧，然后一起幸福生活。 来自互联网
• They fuck like minks, raise rug rats, and live happily ever after. 他们象水貂一样做爱，再养一堆小水貂，然后一起幸福的生活。 来自互联网

3 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

4 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 mutation   

n.变化，变异，转变

参考例句：

• People who have this mutation need less sleep than others.有这种突变的人需要的睡眠比其他人少。
• So far the discussion has centered entirely around mutation in the strict sense.到目前为止，严格来讲，讨论完全集中于围绕突变问题上。

6 vaccines   

疫苗，痘苗( vaccine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His team are at the forefront of scientific research into vaccines. 他的小组处于疫苗科研的最前沿。
• The vaccines were kept cool in refrigerators. 疫苗放在冰箱中冷藏。

7 cull   

v.拣选；剔除；n.拣出的东西；剔除

参考例句：

• It is usually good practice to cull the poorest prior to field planting.通常在实践上的好方法是在出圃栽植前挑出最弱的苗木。
• Laura was passing around photographs she'd culled from the albums at home.劳拉正在分发她从家里相册中挑选出的相片。

8 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

9 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

10 genetic   

adj.遗传的，遗传学的

参考例句：

• It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
• Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。

11 culling   

n.选择，大批物品中剔出劣质货v.挑选，剔除( cull的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The mathematicians turned to culling periodic solutions. 数学家们转而去挑选周期解。 来自辞典例句
• It took us a week to find you, a week of culling out prejudice and hatred. 我们花了一个星期的时间找到你们，把偏见和憎恨剔除出去。 来自演讲部分

12 compensate   

vt.补偿，赔偿；酬报 vi.弥补；补偿；抵消

参考例句：

• She used her good looks to compensate her lack of intelligence. 她利用她漂亮的外表来弥补智力的不足。
• Nothing can compensate for the loss of one's health. 一个人失去了键康是不可弥补的。

13 humane   

adj.人道的，富有同情心的

参考例句：

• Is it humane to kill animals for food?宰杀牲畜来吃合乎人道吗？
• Their aim is for a more just and humane society.他们的目标是建立一个更加公正、博爱的社会。

14 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

15 serum   

n.浆液，血清，乳浆

参考例句：

• The serum is available to the general public.一般公众均可获得血清。
• Untreated serum contains a set of 11 proteins called complement.未经处理的血清含有一组蛋白质，共11种，称为补体。

16 scenario   

n.剧本，脚本；概要

参考例句：

• But the birth scenario is not completely accurate.然而分娩脚本并非完全准确的。
• This is a totally different scenario.这是完全不同的剧本。

17 genes   

n.基因( gene的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You have good genes from your parents, so you should live a long time. 你从父母那儿获得优良的基因，所以能够活得很长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Differences will help to reveal the functions of the genes. 它们间的差异将会帮助我们揭开基因多种功能。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 生物技术的世纪

18 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。