National Council bans fur imports involving animal cruelty
On 17.9.2025, the National Council took decisive steps against animal cruelty in the fur industry. With 183 votes to 9, parliament approved amendments to the Animal Protection Act that ban the import and trade of fur produced under conditions involving animal cruelty.
The proposal is an indirect counter-proposal to the popular initiative «Yes to an import ban on fur products produced through animal cruelty».
This had called for a direct import ban, which would have been legally and trade-legally problematic. The counter-proposal developed by the Federal Council instead relies on controlled certification and documentation requirements.
Swiss retailers and online providers will in future be required to demonstrate when purchasing fur products that these have not been obtained through animal cruelty. Illegal furs may be confiscated. The federal government oversees imports and transit, while the cantons enforce the domestic trade ban. Exceptions apply only to furs in passenger travel or heirlooms, which may be imported but not sold.
During the debate, politicians across party lines emphasised the ethical problem of the fur industry. “How anyone can inflict immeasurable suffering on these animals merely to wear their skin as a tasteless, ostentatious fashion blunder is beyond me,” said Niklaus-Samuel Gugger (EVP/ZH).
A central element of the counter-proposal is certification by the Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (FSVO). This is intended to ensure that production methods are assessed transparently, consistently and objectively — in contrast to internationally recognised certificates, which were rejected by the commission in order to prevent abuse by the industry.
Federal Councillor Elisabeth Baume-Schneider assured that the new regulations would not generate any additional bureaucratic burden. The reason for the strict rules is the disregard of existing declaration obligations by numerous retailers.
The counter-proposal now goes to the Council of States. The initiative committee has already announced that it will withdraw the popular initiative if parliament adopts the counter-proposal.
The 9 SVP no-votes are composed as follows: Wyssmann Rémy, Martullo-Blocher Magdalena, Imark Christian, Hess Erich, Dettling Marcel, de Courten Thomas, Bürgi Roman, Büchel Roland Rino, and Aeschi Thomas.
