Iceland is preparing to restart commercial fin whale hunting this summer, according to confirmed reports from whaling company Hvalur hf. and its managing director Kristján Loftsson.
Preparations are already underway, with whaling ships expected to enter drydock in the coming days. While the final quota has not yet been issued, the decision now appears highly likely, marking a return to the hunt after years of uncertainty over its future.
The quota advice from Iceland’s Marine Research Institute is expected imminently and will determine how many whales can be taken. Previous guidance for the period 2018–2025 allowed for up to 161 fin whales per year in Icelandic waters, although actual catches have been far lower, with just 318 whales taken across four hunting seasons.
Despite industry claims that fin whale populations have increased, conservation concerns remain acute. The fin whale, the second-largest animal ever to live, is still classified as vulnerable globally, and faces growing pressures from ship strikes, climate change and ocean noise.
The resumption of whaling also runs counter to global conservation momentum - most countries abandoned commercial whaling decades ago, and public opposition continues to grow internationally. Iceland remains one of only a handful of nations still stubbornly pursuing the practice. At a time when science is driving solutions to reduce human impacts on whales, the return of commercial whaling is a selfish undermining of decades of conservation effort.
Icelandic conservation and tourism organisations have yet to issue formal responses to the announcement, but early reactions suggest renewed concern about the reputational and economic risks of continuing whaling. Stronger criticism is expected once the final quota is confirmed.
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