Environmental groups worldwide responded by calling for diplomatic action against Norway, following its announcement Tuesday that it intends to resume sales of whale blubber and meat to Japan. It usually grows to about 10 meters and weighs 10 tonnes. This designation bans international commercial trade in an agreed list of endangered species. The IWC estimates minke whales number 112,000 in the Northeast Atlantic and 72,000 in North Atlantic Central.
Trade is a logical consequence of sustainable resource management.
Norway's defiance of a global moratorium on whaling has long attracted protests. That changed on Tuesday. According to a whaling quota set by the government, based on recommendations of the IWC scientific committee, Norwegian whalers will be able to catch 549 minke this year. The country is establishing a DNA-based register for all whales that are part of the Norwegian minke whale catch. Samples have been taken from all whales caught in Norwegian waters in the last few years.