Whaling in Norway includes hunting minke whales for food for people and animals in Norway and for sale to Japan. Whale hunting has been part of Norwegian coastal culture for many years, and businesses that hunt minke whales started in the early 1900s. Some people still hunt whales today, but only within limits set each year.
History
Norwegians began catching whales near Tromsø as early as the 9th or 10th century. Vikings from Norway also taught methods to drive small whales, like pilot whales, into Iceland’s fjords. Old stories and documents from the Norse people mention some family disagreements over dead whales but do not describe organized whaling in Norway.
Spear-drift whaling was used in the North Atlantic as early as the 12th century. In open boats, hunters would throw a marked spear at a whale. Later, they would search for the whale on the shore to claim their share.
From the early 1700s to the 1800s, Basque whalers hunted whales as far north as Svalbard and Bear Island. They joined Dutch and English whaling trips there. Competition between countries led to overfishing whales and wars in the early 1700s. By the middle of the 1700s, other European nations also hunted whales in these areas.
Whales were hunted mainly for their blubber, which was used to make soap, paint, varnish, and oil for lighting. Whalebone, or baleen, was used in items like corsets and umbrellas. When whalers arrived at Spitsbergen, they anchored their ships and built shore stations with materials from the ship. Whales were spotted from shore, chased, and lanced from the front of a small boat. The whale’s body was then pulled back to the shore station, where blubber was removed and boiled. The oil was stored in wooden barrels and loaded onto the ship.
The Dutch used Jan Mayen Island as a base for whaling. They also built a permanent shore station on Amsterdam Island, Svalbard, which later became the village of Smeerenburg. Norwegian ships also went to Svalbard in the 1800s.
New tools and methods in the mid-1800s changed the whaling industry and made Norway a major whaling nation.
In 1865, Thomas Welcome Roys and C. A. Lilliendahl tested a new rocket harpoon and built a shore station in Seyðisfjörður, Iceland. However, falling oil prices after the American Civil War caused their business to fail in 1867. A Norwegian named Svend Foyn studied similar methods in Iceland.
Svend Foyn, known as the "Father of modern whaling," was born in Tønsberg in 1809. After many experiments, he patented a modern harpoon in 1870, a design still used today. He improved on other methods by adding an explosive tip to the harpoon and using a flexible joint. His early cannons used special padding and gunpowder but were later replaced with safer models.
In 1864, Foyn tried whaling in Finnmark but caught only a few whales. With his improved harpoon and powered ships in 1870, he could hunt larger whales more efficiently.
Other people had similar ideas before Foyn. In 1867, a Danish man patented a cannon-fired harpoon. An Englishman also patented a grenade harpoon in the same year. In 1856, a German man created a double-barreled whale gun. Other Norwegians tested explosive harpoons before Foyn.
From 1873 to 1883, Foyn had a monopoly on whaling in Norway, given by the government to stop German competition. He moved his operations to Vadsø and had great success, though conflicts with local fishermen and people in Vadsø occurred. He also built guano factories to use whale remains. Attempts to sell whale meat failed.
Despite the monopoly, in 1876, other Norwegians formed a new whaling company near Varanger Fjord, where Germans had first set up. After a court case, Foyn allowed other companies to operate, including the first modern whaling company in Sandefjord. When the monopoly ended, more whaling companies and ships appeared, and whale numbers dropped rapidly. Fin whales and blue whales were hunted heavily, with 1,046 fin whales and 148 blue whales killed between 1885 and 1886. Small boat whalers also hunted bottlenose whales in large numbers. By 1890, about 70 ships caught 3,000 of the 30-foot-long whales each year.
Svend Foyn died in 1894 at age 85.
In 1878, a poor fishing season led to renewed complaints about whaling. A scientific group suggested a closed whaling season from January to May. In 1880, the Norwegian Parliament approved the plan. A ban on whaling in Varanger Fjord lasted from January 1881 to May 1885. Whaling became economically important to Norway, but poor fishing catches in the 1880s led to calls for a total ban. The closed season was extended to 1890.
Fishermen pushed harder for restrictions after poor catches in 1886 and 1887. A good catch in 1889 did not stop their opposition. Whaling companies argued against restrictions, but the closed season was extended until 1896.
The conflict between whalers and fishermen became a major political issue by 1900. Fishing in Varanger worsened for fishermen from 1901 to 1903. As disputes turned into a class struggle, Russian competition and protests influenced government decisions. Politicians worried about losing fishermen’s votes. In June 1903, fishermen destroyed a whaling station in the "Menhaven Riots." A law banning whaling in Norway’s three northernmost counties was passed in 1903, taking effect in 1904.
In 1883, whaling expanded to Iceland after whale numbers near Norway dropped. Foyn tried to profit from whaling in Iceland but failed. In response to demands that Norwegians in Iceland become Icelandic citizens, Foyn sold his shares. A major shareholder, Thomas Amlie of Oslo, took over and had success. Other companies moved operations to Iceland. In 1897, Amlie died at sea with his ship and crew. He is considered the father of modern whaling in Iceland.
Between 1883 and 1915, ten whaling companies (mostly Norwegian) were founded and operated 14 shore stations on Iceland’s east and west coasts.
Consumption and subsidies
Whale meat caught in Norway is mainly eaten by people. In 2014, 113 metric tonnes of parts of the whale not used for meat were sold to make animal feed for the fur industry. Whale meat is also used as a specialty product for pet food in Norway. According to polls conducted by the company Opinion in 2009 and 2010, about 80% of Norwegians have eaten whale meat. About 32% ate it once or twice a year. In 2009, 7% of Norwegians ate whale meat often (more than once a month), while in 2010, the percentage was "under 5%." In 2018, about 153 tonnes of whale meat was exported to Japan.
The Norwegian government once provided financial support equal to about half the value of whales caught. These payments are no longer made.
Production
Modern minke whaling is done by many small to medium-sized fishing boats during the spring and summer seasons. These boats use harpoon cannons that are 50 mm (2.0 in) or 60 mm (2.4 in) in size. The harpoons are tipped with special explosives called penthrite grenades, which are designed to explode inside the whale. Each harpoon is attached to a strong nylon line and connected to a winch through a system of springs.
The boats look for whales in areas near the coast of Norway where whales are known to feed. They travel at a speed of 4-6 knots and watch for signs of whales, such as groups of birds eating krill or whales surfacing to breathe. When a whale is spotted, the gunner tries to shoot it in the side near the chest as it comes up for air. If the whale does not die right away, it is pulled onto the boat, and whalers use rifles to shoot it in the head to finish the process. In very rare cases, a second harpoon may be used, but this happens very infrequently.
Once the whale is dead and next to the boat, a wire or rope is tied to its tail. The whale is then pulled onto the deck through a gate on the boat’s side. The whale is butchered on the boat, and the meat and blubber are packed in ice and stored for later processing on land.
Since 1985, Norway has caught hundreds of minke whales each year. Per Sandberg, the former Fisheries Minister of the Progress Party, said in 2018, "I want to make sure that the whaling remains alive." However, the number of active whaling boats in Norway has decreased from 350 in 1949 to about 20 in 2016 and 11 in 2017.
IWC – Norway Minke Whale Catches Under Objection (1985–2017)
IWC – Norway Minke Whale Special Permit Catches (1988–1994)
Norwegian whaling follows strict rules about all parts of the process, including hunting seasons, limits on how many whales can be caught, equipment used, and monitoring. Permission to go whaling is given each year, and hunters must meet certain requirements to get a license.
One important rule is that all license holders and gunners must complete a required training course. These courses are organized by the Directorate of Fisheries. Before each hunting season begins, hunters must also pass required shooting tests using both rifles and harpoon guns.
Until 1984, Norwegian whalers used cold (non-explosive) harpoons because minke whales are small and the cost of explosives was high. The Norwegian College of Veterinary Science tested new harpoons with explosives to help whales die faster. Four types of "whale grenades" were developed using penthrite. Two were made for 50 mm (2 in) and 60 mm (2 in) cannons, one for 90 mm (4 in) cannons used by Icelanders hunting larger whales, and one for darting guns used by Alaskan whalers. In 2000, an improved version called Hvalgranat-99 was created with help from the Norwegian Defence Research Establishment. This harpoon is now used by Norway, Iceland, Greenland, and Japan. The Norwegian Ministry of Fisheries funded the development and recovered the cost by selling the harpoons.
A study from 1985–1986 showed that using the first penthrite grenade prototype increased the percentage of minke whales that died immediately after being hit from 17% to 45%. In 2000, the improved Hvalgranat-99 became required, and with better training, this rate rose to 80% in the next three whaling seasons.
Controversy
Groups that care about animal rights, the environment, and stopping whaling have said that Norway's economic situation makes it strange that the country continues commercial whaling. This is even though whaling has a very small impact on the economy and many countries oppose it.
According to documents shared by WikiLeaks, former U.S. president Barack Obama, who promised to oppose whaling during his campaign, used diplomatic methods to pressure Norway during his visit to honor the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize.
Groups that support whaling, such as the North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission, have said that it is unfair to force anti-whaling rules on a country that is independent. They also express concern about factory farming in other nations, which they believe causes more harm than whaling. Many people who support whaling agree that it does not greatly help the economy, but they say it provides jobs for some people and small businesses. They also believe that using resources from non-endangered species is important for long-term development and that whaling is part of the culture in coastal areas. Arne Kalland argues that trying to stop whaling through international pressure is a form of cultural imperialism against Norway.
Some Norwegian environmental groups do not support whaling, but they say they are against using extreme actions, such as sabotage, to stop the whaling industry.
Because the Norwegian government disagrees with paragraph 10(e) of the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling (ICRW), which refers to the 1986 moratorium, this rule does not apply to Norway. Therefore, the 1986 International Whaling Commission (IWC) global ban on whaling does not affect Norway.