http://www.furisgreen.com/afficherevenement.aspx?id=202&langue=en&unite=001


Grey seal mess a result of seal product market attacks, says Fur Institute
May 28, 2010

by Fur Institute of Canada

Ottawa, May 28, 2010 - A Department of Fisheries and Ocean’s plan to cull and incinerate up to 220,000 grey seals off Nova Scotia’s sable island is an example of an ecological “mess” created by the animal-rights movement against the sustainable-use of seal products, says the Fur Institute of Canada.

The plan, which could cost Canadian taxpayers up to $35 million, involves either a large-scale kill and disposal of grey seals, or a targeted contraception program aimed at Canada’s grey seal population, which has grown to 300,000 strong and is now considered a danger to the recovery of threatened groundfish stocks.

According to the Fur Institute, all industry efforts to utilize the animals in accordance with government-set quotas have failed in recent years, due in large part to the strong animal-rights lobby against the use of the animals.

“We have said for years that there are only two options for managing abundant populations, as a sustainable resource, or as a pest,” said Rob Cahill, the Fur Institute’s Executive director.

Members of the Fur Institute involved in the seal processing sector have indicated that it has not been possible to develop a viable plan for the commercial use of grey seals in recent years, due to anti-sealing pressures.

“We hope that this announced cull will be a wake-up call for Canadians who have questions about the commercial use of harps seals, the population of which dwarfs the current grey seal numbers by 23 to 1,” says Cahill.

Quick Facts on Sealing in Canada

- An April 2010 poll conducted by TNS Canadian Facts indicated that 2 out of 3 Canadians accept seal hunting where populations are not endangered and animal welfare is respected.

- The same poll indicated that fully 85% of Canadians appreciate the need to manage seal populations in relation to the abundance of important fish stocks.

- Canada’s harp seal population consumes approximately 8 million metric tonnes of fish annually. By contrast, Canada’s entire fishery yields less than 1 million metric tonnes annually.

The Seals and Sealing Network Study was conducted using TNS Canadian Facts' national bi-weekly telephone omnibus service. A total of 1,017 nationally representative Canadian adults were interviewed between April 12 and 18, 2010. For a survey sample this size, the margin of sampling error is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

I would like to get my hands on some "real" seal oil.Another example of misguided management and use.Maybe if they stopped with the clubs it would not seem so "cruel" to the whiners.I only know what I have seen about harvesting seals, so if I am wrong with the club statement feel free to correct.

If 85 percent of canadians think it's ok to manage seals, why is the government worried about it? Could the people who make those desicions be ARs?

Marketing is what prevents waste of a natural resource. If folks have markets to sell to the carcass will not be wasted. The US of A has imposed a ban on seal product for thirty years on the lies of H$U$ , PETA, Green Peace, IWFA. Now the European Union is getting on the same ban wagon. Meanwhile the Animal Rights activists have been able to convince folks that seals are not a marketable product after the importation of seal products was canceled around the world. Waste is the end result. As for clubbing. It doesn't look ascetic but it is the same method used to kill your beef ,only on a smaller scale of brain impalement. The sealer must use the hakapik three times in quick succession piercing the brain as a single bolt would kill a cow in a slaughter house. BTW , the Government of Canada is a Signatory to the Marine Protection Act and as such they are RESPONSIBLE for managing the seals as the world marine coastal communities deem necessary in order to maintain a balance in Marine Ecology .


I suggest folks read this link http://www.maninnature.com/MMammals/Seals/Seals1l.html



and maybe a follow up on this link as it is much more Scientific then WWF or Sea Shepherd emotionaly driven garbage.

http://www.maninnature.com/Management/ARights/index.html

Thanks, most informative....your posts always are. Tom

It is a shame to waste a managed resource. How does seal meat taste?

Those who like seal meat ,like it a lot. There are many markets that seal meat & oil could fill but the Animal Rights propaganda killed those markets with outright lies. One real good market could have been refining seal oils for Omega three capsules. The Omega three from seal oil is supposed to be superior to cod & halibut oil. The US ban was a real killer for the seal industry. It just took longer for the animal rights folk to fool the rest of the world.

Any way to sell them to China...?