-  japan
 -  norway
 -  IWC
 -  trade
 -  subsistence whaling

Norway resumed commercial whaling in 1993 as an attempt by the political party in power at the time to gain popularity in northern Norway. In order to justify its hunt, Norwegian scientists calculated a population estimate, which was later found to be much higher than the data supported. The scientific controversy surrounding Norway's population estimates for Minke whales continues today,but even if the populations could be accurately determined, Norway's whale hunt still directly undermines the authority of the International Whaling Commission (IWC).

Cutting up a Minke whale in Norway.© Greenpeace

Since restarting its commercial whaling, Norway has claimed that its Minke whale hunt is small scale and traditional. In fact, Norway did not begin Minke whaling until 1930. Some of Norway's whaling vessels cross international waters and travel more than a thousand miles to reach their hunting grounds. The ships act as small factories, flensing whales on board and remaining at sea for weeks at a time. Norway's whaling fleet is by no means crucial to the survival of Norway's coastal communities, which in reality depend on the state of Norway's fisheries. Brochures published by the Norwegian government claim that whale meat is sold in Norway where it is a traditional part of the Norwegian diet. The reality is that there is little market for the meat in Norway.

The real goal of Norway's whalers is export to Japan where prices paid for whale meat are several times higher than in Norway. One whaler commented to the press "When export is reopened, who ever has a license to whale will be sitting on a gold mine." When the Norwegian government announced in January 2001, that it would allow exports to resume, a spokesperson for the whalers public relations arm described the decision as 'the final victory'.

Japan and Norway have been discussing a resumption in whale trade since then despite the fact that this is in contradiction to the ban imposed by the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species (CITIES) on the trade of whale products.