What Is Fur Commission USA?

Introduction
History

Humane Care Merit Award Certification Program
Governance
Affiliations

Introduction

Fur Commission USA (FCUSA) represents 420 mink-farming families on 330 farms in 28 states. Our volunteer board and committees work to ensure superior standards of animal husbandry through our own certification program, and to educate the public about responsible fur farming and the merits of fur.

Farmed fur is a natural fiber and an environment-friendly resource. By feeding their domesticated carnivores the "leftovers" from human food production (beef, fish, dairy, poultry), fur farmers reduce the environmental impact of the agricultural sector as a whole. And when your fur jacket comes to the end of its long life, it's biodegradable too.

Fur farmers also make an important contribution to wildlife conservation. Farmed fur complements fur harvested as a part of wildlife management. By stabilizing prices in times of heavy demand, fur farmers help wildlife managers focus on ecological needs, not on market demands.

As if that were not enough, fur is a superior insulator that is durable, and exquisite to look at and to touch. It is not by chance that people the world over love fur!

History

FCUSA was created in 1994 by the merger of several organizations with histories going back to 1944.

1) The National Board of Fur Farm Organizations, Inc., a non-profit co-operative association, was incorporated in Minnesota on December 16, 1944. This was a national group whose membership was comprised mainly of state, regional and local fur-farming organizations, but also included a few large farmers as individual members. Some of the founding member organizations, such as breeders' associations in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Utah, already had long histories of serving their individual fur-farming members. There were more than 20 original organization members, and over the years others joined while some ceased to exist.

2) The Fur Farm Animal Welfare Coalition, Ltd., was formed on October 9, 1987. The Coalition had previously been a committee of the National Board of Fur Farm Organizations. However, it was decided that it made more sense to have it as a separate organization focused on animal welfare and addressing animal “rights” issues, with funding for its programs coming from all farmers through the auction process.

3) The Mink Farmers Research Foundation, Inc., was formed on March 1, 1954, to focus on research into mink diseases, nutrition, care practices, etc, with a board of farmers assisted by dedicated veterinarians.

Each of these three organizations had its own funding mechanism. To improve coordination of their activities and establish a joint funding mechanism, the National Fur Commission, Inc. was established on January 25, 1988. The Commission then created Mink Farm Service, Inc. in July 1989 to assume the role of the former EMBA-GLMA Mink Farm Service, Inc.(1) to help continue the veterinarian service/program for all fur farmers. With the Commission working with the farmers and auction houses to provide funding, the member organizations focused on their programs to benefit all farmers no matter where or how the farmers sold their product. The Commission's primary duty was to receive funds from the auctions and farmers and to divide the funds among the member organizations.

FCUSA, Inc. was officially formed on June 8, 1994 as a more formal combination of the organizations which had been the members of the National Fur Commission. In the new organization it was the farmers who were the members, and separate permanent committees were established to handle the functions that the separate organizations had previously handled. While financial realities and the consolidation of fur farms into larger entities helped drive the changes, incorporation was only concluded after a number of years in the National Fur Commission structure had built up a level of trust and cooperation, and after negotiations resulted in safeguards to protect the programs, permanent committees, goals and financial reserves which each entity brought to the new organization.

(1) EMBA (Mutation Mink Breeders Association) was a not-for-profit marketing association formed by mink farmers in 1942. In 1973 it bought the for-profit Seattle Fur Exchange Inc., in 1973. GLMA (Great Links Mink Association) promoted mink under the Blackglama brand, and in 1985 merged with EMBA to form the American Legend Cooperative. In 1999, Seattle Fur Exchange merged with American Legend, which became a farmer-owned marketing cooperative.

What is the Humane Care Merit Award Certification Program?

The fur industry's Merit Award program was one of the first formalized humane care certification programs in U.S. agriculture. In consultation with veterinarians, animal scientists, wildlife biologists and farmers, the industry developed a set of rigorous standards for the humane production of farm-raised furbearing animals. Farms meeting the standards receive the Merit Award certification only after an independent licensed veterinarian has completed a comprehensive inspection to verify compliance. Nearly 95% of U.S. mink production comes from certified farms.

How is Fur Commission USA governed?

Fur Commission USA is governed by an elected nine-member Board of Directors. Only fur farmers are eligible to serve as Board members. Fur farmers and veterinarians serve on various Fur Commission USA committees.

Is Fur Commission USA affiliated with other agriculture organizations?

Fur Commission USA is a member of and/or works closely with the following leading national agriculture organizations: the American Farm Bureau Federation, the California Farm Bureau, the New York Farm Bureau, the Utah Farm Bureau, the Wisconsin Farm Bureau, the Animal Agriculture Alliance, American Agri-Women, and the Wisconsin Agribusiness Council.

It is also a member of the Discovery Institute and the National Animal Interest Alliance.

Outside the US, it is a member of the Fur Institute of Canada and the International Fur Trade Federation.

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