Whaling 'inhumane and pointless,' animal welfare group says

The Directorate of Animal Welfare in Iceland has called on the government to immediately halt whaling, labeling the practice as both inhumane and pointless. This comes as the first fin whales caught in two years were brought ashore at the Hvalur whaling station in Hvalfjörður.

In a statement, the Directorate expressed strong opposition to the hunts, questioning the business rationale for Hvalur hf. and its main shareholder, Kristján Loftsson. They pointed out that significant stockpiles of whale meat remain in cold storage despite two years without whaling and limited activity prior to that, with no apparent market for the product.

The Directorate raised a critical question about Loftsson's true motivations, suggesting the hunts are financially detrimental. They speculated whether the whaling activities aim to obstruct the government from legislating against whaling this autumn or to influence an upcoming referendum on European Union membership, given the EU's ban on whaling.

Furthermore, the Directorate highlighted a June 2023 finding by the expert committee on animal welfare. The committee concluded that whaling of fin whales, the second-largest animals on Earth, likely contravenes animal welfare laws. They stated there is no known humane method for killing these massive marine mammals.

"Kristján Loftsson's freedom to pursue this outdated hobby was subsequently deemed more important than animal welfare laws by the Ombudsman of Althingi. This cannot stand," the Directorate's statement concluded, urging media to seek answers to these pressing questions.

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Frelsi Kristjáns Loftssonar til að halda úti þessu úrelta áhugamáli sínu var í framhaldið, af Umboðsmanni Alþingis, metið þýðingarmeira en lög um velferð dýra. Við þetta verður ekki unað.