Norway kicks off minke whale hunt as scant demand
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Norway on Saturday kicked off its annual six-month whale hunt season with a quota of 999 minke whales, up from 880 animals in 2016.
However, shares are never taken in whole because demand is scant — between 30 and 60 percent of the quota in recent years — and the industry has seen its numbers decrease because of retiring whalers.
The International Whaling Commission imposed a commercial ban on whaling in 1986, but Norway objected.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Greenpeace called Norwegian whaling "a dying industry" and maintained it is wrong of Norway to violate international agreement
Norwegian officials estimate there are more than 100,000 North Atlantic minke whales — not an endangered species — off Norway where the hunt takes place.