It is shocking that this still occurs. There was a time when this tradition had a place. There is no reason to justify such brutality today when we live in an industrialized society. Some basic strategizing would reveal job replacement opportunities for local communities. The world is a different place and we have to move forward in our thinking. The same mentality that kills the seals is killing our world.

Does anyone know where seal meat is sold? From what I gather it is high in Omega-3s, I'd like to try it.

Far better to use the meat than have it go to waste.

Never underestimate the power of ignorant people, especially when they fear progressive change and responsibility.

Thanks for helping bring this issue into the light.

Scott
Anchorage, AK

Why would the Canadian government allow this to happen? For the same reasons that they have allowed the BC coastal rainforest to be stripped, with only a tourist friendly strip left behind.

As usual we are only seeing one side of the story. Harp seal population levels at 5.5 million are 3 times larger than they were in 1970. If you ask people in the fishing and lobster industries around Newfoundland and Labrador they will tell you that elevated seal populations severly deplete fish populations. Sealing may not be very pretty but it does serve a purpose. Deer hunting isnt pretty either and yet it serves the same purpose....to keep populations in check. Perhaps we should start thinking of ways to check the human population as well.

I can't wait to try seal. Lacking predation, if you don't kill 'em then they starve to death after decimating the local food supplies.
May as well use as much as you can after stripping the skin.

Come on people, seriously... If you don't approve of the seal hunt because of all the "brutality" then you shouldn't ever eat any meat again. It's no more brutal than any other kill, it just happens to take place on snow so it looks much more gruesome than systematically killing cows on a grate floor, mechanically cutting the heads and feet off chickens, splitting live crabs in half on hydraulic shears, etc...

If you can't stomach the idea of an animal being killed then you shouldn't be eating and/or wearing them. Period. If you're going to tell people not to hunt seals then you'd better go protest all the people out in the country who are snaring rabbits. There are a lot more people out there doing that than there are hunting seals, and it's a FAR more brutal death than a seal being shot.

Very few people actually hunt with clubs, hooks and spears anymore. High power rifles are the tool of choice. PETA and other groups like them provide misinformation about the hunt, display fourty-year-old footage like it was yesterday, and whip up a big fuss with NO intention of stopping the hunt because the attention and funding it brings to them is far too profitible. That is the truth of the matter.

Read some information written by someone who isn't a fanatical activist before you make up your mind about the hunt.

Cheers,
Mike

Sealing is a way of life....

Any meat left on ice flows DOESN'T get wasted it feeds Gulls, Crab,Lobster and all other types of life forms. So the hunt isn't pretty EVER BEEN TO A SLAUGHTER HOUSE!!!

Are all you that oppose the hunt willing to donate money on a monthly basis to create new and sustainable livelyhoods for those who have been sealing all through their families traditions?????

Ya I thought so !!!

BAck off and let them live it's certainly not impacting the seal society....theres not enough sealers to even make a difference.

AS FAR AS PAUL McCARTNEY GOES HE SHOULD TEND TO HIS OWN AFFAIRS BEFORE TRYING TO START SOMETHING ELSE ( great role model LOL)

Quite well argued, just like someone wanting to have the pelts and earn a lot of money with it would do. Somehow i would question the fact that overfishing stems from the seal population beeing to high.... Maybe we should do the first step first and reduce the fishing we do before we start hunting down the next species... Just a thought: If the seal numbers reduce to a critical level again, do we then start hunting polar bears?

I have the perfect idea...Let's go natural. Let's close all the hospitals, then all the sick people and the elders will die and so on. The world population will drop by billions within two decades the demande for cod and other fish will drop as well so we won't be needing controled fish stocks anymore thus we won't need to control the seals population either. How's that for a natural way of life?

Is there someone selling seal meat in Winnipeg.
How about a recipe book. Got to get me some.

I thought I read somewhere the seal hunt is due to a lack of food for the seals in the area. Any ideas?

I can't say I disagree with the killing of animals for food, as I am a meat eater, but why in 2008 are we still killing animals for their fur? This isn't 2008 B.C. There's no need to wear fur on our backs anymore. And I have never in my lifetime ever seen "seal meat" in my local grocery store.

Please people at least be honest. "We kill seals for their fur because there are people in the world with more money than ethics who will pay us to provide them with fur". End of story. No, "this is to control animal population" crap. Stop blaming seals for the lack of cod! Ya fished the oceans dry that's why there's no more cod!

Feed you families? The best thing you could do for your families is get them off that rock.

Hey, I'm writing an essay FOR the killing of baby seals, my teacher made me. At first, I thought 'Oh, crap. How the heck can I write about something I don't believe in.'
I hardly could write a paragraph. But, it turns out, I finished it, not 'three sentences' finnshed it. It's also like the slaughter of cows. It's been going on since 1885 and no one has cared. I'm not encouraging wacky websites that say 'I heart Cows!!!'. Still, the meat doesn't go to waste, people eat it. I'm not saying I like it or anything 'cause I don't and I've never tried, but, still. You get my point. Try taking a look at this website. Maybe it'll change your perspective. I don't mean for you to LOVE the seal hunt, I just want to let you know that you shouldn't hate it.

http://www.orato.com/print/26

hope this helped. ^^

Coming from Northern Labrador, I can`t quite relate to the nay sayers out there, but I can guarantee you one thing: if a seal had the face of a hyenna, nobody would have a problem with their deaths. The fact is, seals are hunted for their food and their pelts. Why? cause it keeps the natives and other locals alive. It may be 2008, but it`s still primitive times to alot of the northern population, excluding the basic conveniences. They need the seals to survive. We don`t see masses of furs and seal meat on the market, particularly becasue they stay withing the northern communities. They are needed. Killing seals serve a valuable role.

If you wanna bitch about inhumane killings, well there are alot of countries doing just that to their people today. Why do you think almost nobody in these northern areas, whether they profit from the death of seals or not, complain? Cause they are informed. Maybe some of you should try it.

SEAL HUNTING WILL END SOONER THAN LATER AND THOSE THAT HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THIS HORRIFIC MESS WILL HAVE TO ANSWER TO THE HIGHER POWER! SEAL HUNTING IS A DISGRACE GOD'S CREATURES.
WWW.TARALORIN.COM

I love seal meat, love killing them too. Lots of fun shooting or clubin..no matter they die.

I fish and clam on long island and new jersey . seals have really made a come back around hear and i would like to start eating them.

Where i can buy seals meat in Québec ?

Cheers ! Paul

Seal Pops they taste like Seal
Seal Pops they are made with Seal
Seal Pops they're a real big deal
Seal Pops

Kenny the Shark

All the foreigners who protest the Canadian seal hunt should mind their own business. I've had seal meat and it was great. They have enough problems in their own countries without causing problems for Canadians.

Seal meat is delicious and nutritious. It is hunted in a responsible and highly regulated manner. There is nothing savage about it. Chastising it is irresponsible. What do you want people in Newfoundland to eat? Meat from factory farms? Produce shipped in from California? Those things are not better for this world. If you are a vegetarian, understand that that is a difficult way to live here and you have to balance fossil fuel use. If you are not a vegetarian, think about it, seal hunting is not worse than any other meat industry, and is better in many ways.

Hey, hungry seal eaters, here's the link you've been waiting for! Why don't you put your money where your mouth is - only $68.99 for 40 pounds of baby seal meat: http://run.petsorfood.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=P&Product_Code=BS&Category_Code=E

Amynfld, you're right about eating local, but the point is that there's too MUCH seal meat - Newfoundlanders simply aren't eating enough of it to justify the scale of the hunt, so it's being wasted. The hunt isn't really for meat - it's all about the pelts.

Northern communities are extremely impoverished with little economic base. It's perfectly ethical to kill an animal if it dies a painless death in order to sustain human life. The seals have it far better off than farmed cows or chickens.

sealing is necessary... there are millions of these seals and there natural predators are going extinct (polar bears, whales).... if we don't engage in sealing we would have an environmental disaster

banning seal meat and fur will only hurt the poor fishers that rely on this income, it will do nothing to prevent sealing, for it is environmentally necesary, and the government will encourage it with hunting licenses and cullings as they do with deer, and elk, when populations get too high... no one complains about elk meat.

I think where a lot of the international pressure comes from is a misunderstanding of what is needed to manage wildlife populations, and consequently protect natural diversity.... most of Europe doesn't have much nature left so it makes sense for them to not understand what is necessary in the great white north

Hey Canadian.....

"Europe doesn't have much nature left so it makes sense for them to not understand what is necessary in the great white north"

Are you drunk? Do you know why they dont?

A Condom for your father was "environmentally necesary"

Dear god you for this article.

Where can I buy seal meat in Nova Scotia? I've heard it is quite tasty.

First of all, I'm a vegetarian, and I support all animals, whether they're cute or not. And honey, I'm not a "fanatical hippie activist," but I think slaughtering all animals is cruel.

The Inuit only hunt adult seals and they only hunt about 10,000 a year. There is no Inuit involved in commercial seal hunt. And really, do you think the poor fishermen make a whole lot of fortune from this? A seal pelt will only earn them about $14 each. If they stopped seal hunting, then they would make more money since a lot of people worldwide are boycotting Canadian seafood because of this. Omega-3? That can be substituted with flaxeed oil, which has way more Omega-3 than seal oil. Besides, a recent study by Memorial University revealed that 80% of seal blubber goes to waste.

You guys need to stop avoiding the subject, seriously. "There are a lot of people being killed in Darfur...," "Why don't you protest against slaughterhouse...," blah blah blah. Face it, seal hunting is cruel and there are a lot of better alternatives to it. The whale-watching industry has grown since Canada banned commercial whale hunting, and it's now worth more than seal hunt; ecotourism could be a better alternative.

Only a few of you stated why you were not against seal hunting in a logical manner. The rest of you were being trolls, posting immature, unlogical things such as "I love killing seals," just to piss us off. You call that informed? Haha.

Well, as for the high fat, you should opt for the leaner cuts, which prevents mercury. One should remember though, drink green tea- your body can flush heavy metals out of your body if you dont overload it. The recipes are not that bad,

Dose anyone know where seal meat is

sold in Toronto?

There is seal meat sold in Montreal.

I believe seal hunting should be supported in Canada, the overpopulation of seals on the west coast is having a disastrous effect on the salmon population. The most responsible/logical choice would be to manage the seal population and create more of a balance. Sealing could become a positive industry, for the environmentalists I'd limit the use of hakapiks to the first nations people only, even though it's a tool from Norway originally.

Killing seals is cruel????

Watch any documentry where african wild dogs are dismembering an impala, an orca pod is drowning a baby whale, or a wolf pack is hunting an elk and tearing into its abdominal cavity while its still alive.

Call life cruel if you want, hunting seals is not. Personally, i wouldnt hunt baby seals but other than that its just meat....

hmm i agree with hunting for the meat i mean it's a choice and people shouldn't be forced to be vegan. But what i don't agree with is that the pups have to die for fur i mean of how many are killed it's probably (just a theory not a fact) going to affect their population. Surely killing that babies will not give them a good chance of survival seeing as they already have a high risk of drowning. Hunt for meat by all means but seriously is fur worth the risk of humans putting more species exticint (if that's how you spell it) because of our way of life. So yeah hunt for meat but at least let them get a chance to grow more of a population.

open a seal meat cannery--i love the meat-put me down for case

Is this incredible resource being wasted? Why can't it be purchased in western Canada? Anyone with suggestions on how to get it on the store shelves on the prairies?

I would LOVE to buy seal meat. I just can't find anyplace that carries it. The exotic meat market is a good one and there are a lot of people that love to try new things.

This is the reason why people should turn to vegetation.

Why is killing a seal different then a farm chicken?

Oh yeah the seal lives its life naturally while a farm chicken lives in a dirty overcrowded cage.

But (baby) seals are cute. Your right the seal hunt is terrible.

By the way the bit about seal meat being wasted is a complete lie. They're also shot.

Anyone opposed to the seal hunt that isn't already a full vegan is an incompetent hypocrite as well as poorly informed and gullible.