Furmark® delivers the reassurance needed to confidently buy sustainable natural fur. The certification is transparent, traceable and readily accessible.
WelFur is the fur farm inspection and certification programme covering mink, fox, and Finnraccoon (Asiatic raccoon) in Europe. Assessments are performed by third party assessors and farms that fail to meet the strict standards are not included in the certification programme.
The USA has been certifying its farms with veterinarians since 1988 and is currently updating its standards in response to scientific advances and innovation.
Ensuring population and environmental sustainability is key to how wild fur is harvested. The system of checks and balances operates at local, state, regional and provincial levels of government and also through far-reaching international agreements.
Swakara is the name of a specific breed of Karakul (high-quality lambskin) from Namibia. It is expected that, by 2020 auction houses selling Swakara will be able to issue a certificate to show it has met Furmark® requirements.
Moscow State Veterinary Academy has recently developed science-based regulations for keeping and breeding fur-farmed animals in Russia that meet European standards.
Dressers and dyers working with fur are committed to operating to the highest standards: that is why, under the Furmark® scheme, a new chemical standard has been developed with a third-party testing institute.