Iceland allows whale hunting for the 2024 season.

The northern European island has given the green light this Tuesday to whale hunting from mid-June to September for the country’s sole whaling company, Hvalur hf. The permit allows the hunting of 128 common minke whales.

Iceland, one of the three countries in the world to permit whale hunting, gave the green light on Tuesday, June 11th, to this activity for the 2024 season to its only whaler, Hvalur hf.

The permit allows the hunting of 128 common minke whales for the season, which runs from mid-June to September, announced the Ministry of Fisheries and Agriculture, a decrease from the previous season’s quota of 161 whales.

Last year, Iceland suspended whale hunting in June for two months following the publication of a government-commissioned report that concluded the hunting methods used did not comply with animal welfare laws.

I must follow the laws

The government then allowed its resumption on September 1st with restrictions on the methods used and the presence of official inspectors on board, filming each whale catch.

The hunting conditions for 2024 remain the same as last year, clarified the Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture, Bjarkey Olsen Gunnarsdóttir, to Icelandic media.

Iceland, like Norway and Japan, still practices commercial whaling despite fierce criticism from environmental advocates and animal rights defenders.