The test has been refined to the point where it can be used for multiple purposes.
Whale meat is eaten in a number of oriental countries.
However, some species of whale are protected from hunting because their population numbers are so low. The issue is how to determine the specie of origin of whale meat offered for sale. A research group at Harvard developed a DNA fingerprinting for whales. The test allows them to identify species and also individual whales within a species. The test was used to prove that some whale meat sold in Japan came from protected species.