JUST days after a shipment of whale meat illegally exported from Iceland was seized in Latvia, an even bigger haul of protected whale products processed into tonnes of animal feed may already be in circulation in Danish farms, says the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (WDCS).

The Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society is calling urgently on the Danish government and relevant EU authorities to mount an urgent and immediate investigation into the Icelandic exports and, if the whale meal reached the Danish market, to take all steps necessary to identify where the meal has entered the food chain.

WDCS alleges that Iceland exported over 22 tonnes of ‘whale meal’ to Denmark in two shipments, January and March 2009. It says whale meal has been identified by the FAO as a replacement for meat and bone meal for pigs. Denmark is the world’s biggest supplier of pork products, with the UK a major market for its famous Danish bacon.  Whale meal has also been identified as a possible component of feed for farmed fish.

WDCS explain that Iceland has exported more than 233 tonnes of whale products in recent years with a combined value of more than US$3 million. Although international trade in whale products has been banned by CITES since the International Whaling Commission (IWC) outlawed commercial whaling in 1986, Norway, Japan, and Iceland have used loopholes in both agreements to continue commercial hunting and trade of whales. 
Until recently, the whaling nations have traded only meat and blubber with each other, under reservations which exempt them from the trade ban.

Chris Butler-Stroud of WDCS described the new illegal trade in other commercially viable whale products to non-whaling countries, as a “shocking development” adding that such illegal trade constitutes a serious violation of CITES as well as strict European Union laws.
 


Birgith Sloth of the Society for the Conservation of Marine Mammals, Denmark said: “Denmark is world-renowned for its pork and bacon industry, and mink farms. It is also a major supplier of farmed fish. Apparently, all three markets are attractive to Iceland’s unscrupulous and greedy whaling industry.”
 


Butler-Stroud added: “Iceland has apparently returned to the business of mincing whales to make meal, and seems to be testing out potential markets for their products. All governments must be vigilant and take the strongest possible steps to prevent this trade continuing.” 
 


WDCS warns, noting Iceland’s application to join the EU: “Europe now has more than 22 tonnes of reasons for zero-tolerance of Iceland’s whaling and trade. The European public will not accept a whaling nation in their midst producing whales for the human food chain. The EU must act now.” 
 


In addition to the overtly illegal trade to Denmark and Latvia, Iceland has exported whale products worth over $2.5 million in the last twelve months, including 134 tonnes to Japan, and several shipments of whale oil to Norway, under their respective reservations to the trade ban.