Following last week’s news that Fin whaling would not take place in Iceland in 2020 it is now reported that Minke whaling will not go ahead either.
Minke whaling in Iceland is mostly for domestic consumption – in restaurants (often for tourists) and sold in supermarkets.
Today it is reported that thanks to increases in protected areas in Faxaflói imposed by the Icelandic Ministry of Fisheries there will be no commercial whaling by Gunnar Bergmann Jónsson’s company IP-dreifingar.
Mr Jónsson is quoted somewhat confusingly; ‘I don’t see that we’ll be going minke whaling again but this chapter is not finished’.
There was no Minke whaling in Iceland in 2019. In 2018, 6 Minke Whales were caught by Mr Jonsson’s company IP-dreifingar.
It seems to me that the Icelandic government has moved to end whaling in Iceland without having to introduce a full-scale ban, thus allowing quite a few players to save face. Who knows what has gone on behind the scenes, but one way or another it feels as though commercial whaling is petering out in Iceland.
Opportunistic killing of Minke Whales from some coastal communities in Iceland will presumably continue, so this is may not be a completely whaling-free year for Iceland but it is a further big step in the right direction.
International pressure, including the small contribution made by this blog and attendees of the 2018 Bird Fair, have helped the Icelandic government, and Prime Minister Katrín Jacobsdottír, to bring whaling almost completely to a close in 2019 and 2020. Let’s hope we have similar news to report in 2021.
