Sixteen Fin Whales Hunted

The whaling company Hvalur hf. has landed sixteen fin whales, which international authorities say are an endangered species.

Sixteen fin whales out of the seasonal quota of 154 have been hunted so far by Hvalur, RÚV reports, with the intent to export the meat for sale in Japan.

Greenpeace, amongst others, have pointed out that whale meat is not selling there and is in fact piling up in cold storage, as Associated Press investigations uncovered. Kristján Loftsson, the director of Hvalur, dismissed this outright, saying that he would not be hunting whales if there was no market for them.

To avoid previous incidents where ships containing whale meat have been blocked, the ship or ships exporting this new cull will be sailing directly to Japan from Iceland.

As reported, Iceland’s whaling practices – in particular, of the endangered fin whale – has increased diplomatic tensions between Iceland and the United States.