In the name of animal welfare, France has implemented a gradual ban on the use of wild animals in circuses, marine parks and mink farms nationwide.

Breeding or adding captive dolphins and killer whales to the country’s three marine parks is banned effective immediately. In the coming years, France will enact a multi-stage ban on using lions, elephants, bears, tigers and other wild animals in traveling circuses. The country also plans to put an end to mink farms, where minks are raised for their fur, within five years.

To date there is no set timeline on the circus ban, but France’s Minister of Ecological Transition Barbara Pompili says the process should start as soon as possible.

“It is time to open a new era in our relationship with these animals,” Pompili said in a press conference. "It is time that our ancestral fascination with these wild beings no longer means they end up in captivity."

The animals currently in captivity will be rehomed “on a case-by-case basis,” according to the minister, and the creation of a new government sanctuary for them is under consideration.

The ban will not apply to wild animals in zoos or other permanent attractions and shows.

According to Pompili, the French government will be creating an $9.2 million aid package to help circuses and marine parks workers transition to new employment.

"We are asking [circuses and marine parks] to reinvent themselves," Pompili says. "That transition will be spread over several years because it will change the lives of many people."