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Experts from the WDCS have today expressed their anger and great concern following the alarming discovery that Iceland has killed at least 93 endangered fin whales this summer, making this (together with an additional 63 minke whales) the largest commercial whale hunt in North Atlantic waters for decades. The meat and blubber from the whales may yield a staggering two million kilogrammes of edible products.

“This is an outrage,” said WDCS spokesperson Kate O’Connell. “There is simply no way that so much whale meat and blubber can be consumed domestically, and the whalers are deluding themselves if they think they can make any money exporting whale meat to Japan. Sales of whale products in Japan have made financial losses for much of the last 20 years, and market demand there has dropped. Iceland’s whaling policy seems as ill-founded as its economic policies have been.”

In comparison, in the last two years combined, Iceland killed a total of 82 minke whales. The sudden, unjustifiable increase goes totally against efforts to conserve these whales in neighboring European waters. Iceland’s actions are even more baffling when set against the Country’s ongoing negotiations to gain entry into the European Community where such hunting is banned.

WDCS calls on Europe and other members of the IWC (International Whaling Commission) to make Iceland stop this barbaric practice. The fin whale is the second largest animal ever to have lived, it is in the process of recovery from previous industrial whaling and is still regarded as endangered. Iceland’s activity marks a return to the large scale killing of whales that many believed had been consigned to history.

O’Connell continued: “Iceland should expect a swift and strong response from the world community. At a time when its national economy is in free-fall, the last thing Iceland needs is an unnecessary whale hunt that will cause consumers to think twice about purchasing its fish, and could also wreak havoc on the country’s positive image as a nature tourism destination. WDCS calls on the EU to make clear that there will be no special exemption for Icelandic whaling.

And as any potential accession talks proceed, the EU Council and Parliament need to keep in mind that rather than trying to abide by EU law as a sign of good faith, Iceland is escalating its whale hunts at an alarming rate.”

Mark Simmonds, WDCS chief scientist, added, “The fin whales are highly migratory and do not ‘belong’ to Iceland. The same animals that they are killing should be enjoyed by others living further south. The population structure of the North Atlantic fin whale is poorly known but they are regularly seen around the British Isles, in the Bay of Biscay, and their best known breeding ground is around the Azores where they are enjoyed by many tourists.”

MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE HISTORY OF ICELANDIC WHALING CAN BE FOUND HER

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