Today in Denmark: A roundup of the latest news on Wednesday
Mink farmers pursuing new careers, inflation hurts fireworks sales and other news from Denmark on Wednesday.
Mink farmers are finding new careers
Reinventing himself as a brewer at age 62 would never have occurred to Poul Erik Vestergaard, but Denmark's controversial cull of the country's minks over Covid fears forced him to change course.
Authorities ordered the slaughter of the Nordic country's farmed mink population in November 2020 following the discovery of a mutated strain of the coronavirus.
After a two-year ban, Denmark will once again allow mink farming from January 2023.
But for Vestergaard, his mink-raising days are over.
"The farm can be used for other things. That's my view. It's over now. It just has to go," the veteran farmer told AFP at a 100-hectare (247-acre) farm that will become a microbrewery.
Most of the ca. 1,000 farms in the Scandinavian country, once the world's leading exporter of mink fur, have made the same choice, leaving "ghost farms" across the plains of western Denmark, where the husbandry was focused.
Danes are spending less on fireworks
According to an analysis from the Danish Chamber of Commerce (Dansk Erhverv), Danes are spending significantly less money on fireworks this year than last year.
"There is a significant drop in expected consumption. It probably comes from the fact that we are in a situation characterised by high inflation," Frederik Bergenfelt Friis, a consultant at Dansk Erhverv, told Ritzau.
According to the analysis, Danes will spend 300 million kroner this year compared to 450 million last year.
According to Dansk Erhverv's survey, just over one in five households plan to buy fireworks to celebrate the New Year.
Fireworks can be legally set off in Denmark from December 27th up to and including January 1st.
Amount of seized illegal fireworks in Denmark has soared
The Danish Customs Agency has so far seized 1.7 tonnes of illegal fireworks this year – more than a fivefold increase compared to 2018, DR reports.
The increase is due, among other things, to increased efforts from the Customs Agency, which is collaborating with other agencies to control the purchase and sale of fireworks.
"The more we focus on it, the more (illegal fireworks) we find," Jesper Christensen, a manager at the Danish Customs Agency, stated.
Customs officials increasingly intercept illegal fireworks in packages from postal and courier companies.
Danish State Railways to close ticket machines on New Year's Eve
In an attempt to put an end to vandalism on New Year's Eve, Danish State Railways (DSB) is closing all the outdoor ticket machines.
"You may therefore find that you cannot buy tickets via our machines on New Year's Eve. You can instead buy a ticket via our website dsb.dk, or the DSB App. You can also still travel with your Rejsekort," DSB's website states.
The machines will be opened again at some point during New Year's Day.
Comments
See Also
Mink farmers are finding new careers
Reinventing himself as a brewer at age 62 would never have occurred to Poul Erik Vestergaard, but Denmark's controversial cull of the country's minks over Covid fears forced him to change course.
Authorities ordered the slaughter of the Nordic country's farmed mink population in November 2020 following the discovery of a mutated strain of the coronavirus.
After a two-year ban, Denmark will once again allow mink farming from January 2023.
But for Vestergaard, his mink-raising days are over.
"The farm can be used for other things. That's my view. It's over now. It just has to go," the veteran farmer told AFP at a 100-hectare (247-acre) farm that will become a microbrewery.
Most of the ca. 1,000 farms in the Scandinavian country, once the world's leading exporter of mink fur, have made the same choice, leaving "ghost farms" across the plains of western Denmark, where the husbandry was focused.
Danes are spending less on fireworks
According to an analysis from the Danish Chamber of Commerce (Dansk Erhverv), Danes are spending significantly less money on fireworks this year than last year.
"There is a significant drop in expected consumption. It probably comes from the fact that we are in a situation characterised by high inflation," Frederik Bergenfelt Friis, a consultant at Dansk Erhverv, told Ritzau.
According to the analysis, Danes will spend 300 million kroner this year compared to 450 million last year.
According to Dansk Erhverv's survey, just over one in five households plan to buy fireworks to celebrate the New Year.
Fireworks can be legally set off in Denmark from December 27th up to and including January 1st.
Amount of seized illegal fireworks in Denmark has soared
The Danish Customs Agency has so far seized 1.7 tonnes of illegal fireworks this year – more than a fivefold increase compared to 2018, DR reports.
The increase is due, among other things, to increased efforts from the Customs Agency, which is collaborating with other agencies to control the purchase and sale of fireworks.
"The more we focus on it, the more (illegal fireworks) we find," Jesper Christensen, a manager at the Danish Customs Agency, stated.
Customs officials increasingly intercept illegal fireworks in packages from postal and courier companies.
Danish State Railways to close ticket machines on New Year's Eve
In an attempt to put an end to vandalism on New Year's Eve, Danish State Railways (DSB) is closing all the outdoor ticket machines.
"You may therefore find that you cannot buy tickets via our machines on New Year's Eve. You can instead buy a ticket via our website dsb.dk, or the DSB App. You can also still travel with your Rejsekort," DSB's website states.
The machines will be opened again at some point during New Year's Day.
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.