Whaling
The Faroe islands, a remote group of Atlantic islands situated between Scotland and Iceland, have been one of the last strongholds of traditional whaling. Hundreds of pilot whales are hunted every year and eaten by most Faroese in an event called the Grindadrà p. It’s a noncommercial, cultural event that goes back till the 9th century.
The pod driven into a fjord by people in small boats. At the end of the fjord are the hunters to kill the pilot whales. The animals must be killed as quickly and with as little suffering as possible. For this the hunters use a special instrument. Finally the whales are slaughtered and the meat is divided among the residents.
Long-finned pilot whales are very social, living in large schools of hundreds of animals, they stay together what ever happens. The faroese make advantage from this structure so the pods are easy targets for whaling.
Many Faroese consider the whale meat an important part of their food culture and history. Animal rights groups criticize the slaughter as being cruel and unnecessary.
Whales are accumulating heavy metals by their food. For this reason doctors at the Faroe islands do not recommend to eat the meat from the whales.
Photo: insider.com, Andrija Ilic/Reuters
Photo: Sea Shepherd UK/Triangle News