Controversial whale meat cargo shipped back to Iceland
Six containers of fin whale meat from Iceland and bound for Japan are now on their way back after being impounded at the port of Hamburg, Germany. The cargo reached Rotterdam on Saturday, aboard a vessel owned by the Evergreen Line, where it was transferred to the Pioneer Bay, owned by transport company, Samskip. It is due to arrive back in the Icelandic capital, Reykjavik in a few days.
Both shipping companies have publicly stated that this will be the last time they handle whale meat. Despite the negative publicity surrounding the shipment, and the declining demand for the meat in Japan, Icelandic whaler, Kristjan Loftsson claimed the return was ‘not the end of the world’.
To-date, Loftsson’s whaling vessels have slaughtered 50 endangered fin whales this season.