Icelandic Shops Refusing To Sell Whale Meat

A major grocery store chain has issued a statement saying they will no longer sell whale meat at their Húsavík outlets.

640 reports that Samkaup, which runs the Nettó and Krambúð grocery stores, has announced that they will no longer be selling whale meat at their Húsavík locations. This decision was made as a part of Samkaup’s new partnership with the whale watching company Norðursigling.

Húsavík has become a major hub of whale watching in recent years, generating considerable revenue for the small northern town. As such, many see whale hunting as detrimental to the industry.

“Whale hunting and selling whale products have been diametrically opposed to Norðursigling’s policies,” marketing manager for Norðursigling Gústaf Gústafsson told reporters. “It’s symbolic that right here in Húsavík, whale meat is being pulled off the shelves.”

Icelandic support for whaling has been on continuous decline in recent years. Public consumption of whale meat is also extremely low – only about 3% of Icelanders buy whale meat regularly, and some 75% never buy it at all.