Domestic cat fur is still being sold in Victoria despite the Australian government banning the sale of the material over 20 years ago.
This has come to light amid a joint investigation between charity Collective Fashion Justice and the Animal Justice Party. This was confirmed by laboratory testing of a children’s vest, reportedly sold by the Suttons UGG chain store – a brand unrelated to the Ugg Since 1974 brand.
According to joint investigators, the latest find indicates an ongoing issue, as the investigation previously found domestic cat fur gloves for sale at Queen Victoria Market, confirmed by microscopy and DNA testing.
The cat fur vest, likely to be made from the skin of two cats, as well as rabbits, was labelled as “100% sheep skin”.
Two beanies with pom poms labelled as “100% acrylic” were also tested, with the laboratory confirming they were illegally mislabelled and made from fox and raccoon dog fur. These were sold at Queen Victoria Market.
A media report by the ABC contacted Suttons UGG, with the retailer calling the report “wrong”.
According to the media report, a spokesperson said they were informed by the manufacturer that the vest was made from a "kind of special fur", and the company could not "100 per cent confirm" whether that included cat.
Collective Fashion Justice founding director Emma Hakansson said every single time they sent fur for testing, the lab has confirmed it was illegally mislabelled.
“This has been true for years now”, Hakansson said.
“While Victorians will be horrified to know there is cat fur being sold in markets and shopping centres, all fur sales cause unacceptable suffering. No animal should be killed for fashion.”
Victorian Animal Justice Party MP Georgie Purcell said this isn’t the first time a Melbourne retailer has been caught selling cat fur – “and if the Allan Government doesn’t act, it won’t be the last.”
“The message from the community couldn’t be clearer – fur is out of fashion,” Purcell said. “Whether it’s cat, dog, rabbit, or fox – the one constant is that it’s all cruel.
“The time for regulation is done. The only thing left to do is to completely ban fur, just as other jurisdictions around the world have already done.”
Hakansson added that Victoria’s fashion industry led the way when Melbourne Fashion Week was the first in the world to go totally wildlife free – banning all fur, wild animal skins and feathers.
“Collective Fashion Justice helped to write this policy, which is now in place at Australian Fashion Week, and in international shows. Now, Victoria’s government must lead.”