A small school of 20 to 30 pilot whales was driven ashore and killed early this morning, 29 June, in the village of Hvannasund on the northern island of Viðoy.
According to the local district administrator, the drive went according to the regulations and the killing was over in a few minutes. The meat and blubber of the whales will be divided among the participants.
This was the second pilot whale catch so far this summer. The first was in the village of Miðvágur on 6 June, when 154 pilot whales were driven ashore and killed for their meat and blubber.
The government of the Faroe Islands states that it is the right of the Faroese people to use its natural resources.
- The Faroese pilot whale drive is a community based use of a renewable natural resource for food. Whaling in the Faroe Islands is in accordance with international law, and pilot whales are an abundant species in the Northeast Atlantic. Catches in the Faroe Islands are sustainable and fully regulated, with an emphasis on animal welfare. The utilization of pilot whales for food is a natural part of the Faroese way of life and the meat and blubber provide a valued supplement to Faroese households, Prime Minister Kaj Leo Holm Johannesen states.
More information on whales and whaling in the Faroe Islands is available at: www.whaling.fo.
Contact Páll Nolsøe, communication advisor, for more information: tel. +298 551028, palln@tinganes.fo