VICTORY: Millbank Fur Farm Pleads Guilty following LCA's Animal Cruelty Complaint

March 26, 2021 - Millbank Fur Farm, a mink fur farm in Ontario, Canada, has pleaded guilty to failing to comply with prescribed standards of care under section 11.1(1) of the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act and has been ordered to pay a monetary penalty. The investigation revealed severe animal suffering and neglect among the 40,000 mink, who live and die annually, at Millbank.

The LCA Millbank investigation is the first time an Ontario fur farm has been convicted as a result of an undercover investigation conducted by a non-profit.

LCA applauds the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (OSPCA) and Crown Attorney for pursuing justice against Millbank Fur Farm. The legal proceedings were held in the Provincial Court in Guelph, Ontario, but had been significantly delayed due to the pandemic. LCA has confirmed that Millbank Fur Farm has made a number of improvements at the farm that were confirmed by Provincial Animal Welfare Services.

"Although this doesn't excuse the suffering the minks were forced to endure, it sends a clear message to the fur industry: the systemic animal abuse that runs rampant throughout the industry is unacceptable and will not be tolerated by a civilized society", said Chris DeRose, LCA Founder and President. "There is no excuse to kill animals for the sake of fashion and LCA will not stop until this horrific industry is shut down for good."

LCA's investigation and exposure of Millbank Fur Farm is an important reminder of the importance of whistleblowers and transparency in animal agriculture. This is the kind of thing that ag-gag laws like Ontario's recently passed Security from Trespass and Protecting Food Safety Act will make more difficult.  Click here to learn more about ag-gag laws and how to fight them.

Although LCA is an abolitionist organization that would like to see an end to the fur industry, recognizing the suffering of animals abused for fur and setting legal precedents are a step in the right direction towards creating a more compassionate society.

November 2, 2020 - The Millbank Fur Farm matter remains active and before the Provincial Court in Guelph, Onatrio. COVID-19 has delayed the matter due to court closures and associated delays.  The Crown continues to advance the charges against Millbank and the matter should be reaching a resolution soon.  If a plea bargain is not reached, the matter is expected to proceed to trial in early 2021.

June 28, 2019 - As the court hearing on June 28, 2019, no plea bargain was reached and the Crown will continue to move forward on all charges laid. If Millbank and the Crown are unable to reach an agreement, LCA expects this matter will proceed to trial before the end of 2019. 

November 21, 2018 – LCA representative for Millbank Fur Farm appeared at the Provincial Court House in Guelph, Ontario, Canada and requested an adjournment — which was granted and a judicial pre-trial was scheduled for April 12, 2019. 

Warning: Video contains graphic footage.

May 11, 2018 – LCA released video and photo evidence from an undercover investigation, documenting disturbing accounts of animal neglect at Millbank Fur Farm Ltd. in Ontario, Canada. The investigation, which began in 2017 and spanned the course of a year,  is the first in-depth undercover investigation on a fur farm in Canada. More than three million animals are killed annually for their fur in the Canadian fur industry. 

With the evidence collected, LCA submitted a complaint to the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (OSPCA) requesting further investigation. In a public statement released 5/11/18, the OSPCA announced an Ontario mink farm was charged with 14 counts of animal cruelty. In their statement about the charges, the OSPCA spokesperson said, “no one is exempt from the law.”

Warning: Video contains graphic footage taken at Millbank Fur Farm. 

The footage captured in LCA’s investigation reveals numerous incidents of animal suffering and neglect among the 40,000 mink that live, and die, at Millbank Fur Farm annually.

In addition to clear incidents of animal suffering, the evidence collected in the investigation shows animals with open, untreated wounds and infections, and documents a lack of adequate and sanitary mink shelters, and spoiled food. During the course of the investigation, LCA’s investigator never saw a veterinarian on site. 

As is the case with many industries that exploit animals, there is little oversight and few laws that protect animals on fur farms.

Help Stop the Suffering of Fur-Bearing Animals:

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

• Sign LCA's petition demanding the Canadian government to create universal standards for animals on fur farms.*
• Sign the global petition calling for an international ban on fur farming.
• Educate others about the cruelty of the fur industry.
• Donate to help keep LCA's investigators in the field exposing animal cruelty.

* LCA is an abolitionist organization and promotes measures to regulate or reform industries only when those changes will alleviate suffering and make progress towards eliminating animal exploitation.

Minks in a cage	Staring through wire	A bin of carcasses	Bobbing in small cages
A look of despair	A pile of bodies	A painful lesion	Frozen, filthy trenches
An open wound	A warning at the gates	Mink Transport Tubes	Mink Asking for Help
Mink With Head Lesion	Pile of Mink Skins	Washing off Mink Skins	Severe Head Lesions