• The yearly whale cull, called grindadráp in Faroese, began about 800 CE.
• It kills whales by slashing their necks and spinal cords.
• Sea Shepherd said the hunt was “brutal and poorly conducted” and the largest in Faroe history.

This year’s Faroe Island whale hunt can only catch 500 dolphins.

Faroes are 18 autonomous Danish islands. They’re between Iceland and Scotland in the Atlantic Ocean.

The yearly whale cull, called grindadráp in Faroese, began when Vikings established the islands about 800 CE.

Animal rights groups have opposed the cull, which kills whales by slashing their necks and spinal cords.

The Faroese government has defended the hunt by arguing the flesh is “valuable food”

According to the Whales & Whaling on the Faroe Islands website, whale hunting is done for food and the catches are shared. Whale meat and blubber however sometimes sold at docks and grocery stores.

“The flesh from each whale drive supplies a lot of valuable food,” a Faroese government spokeswoman told last year. “The 1,400 dolphins caught on Sunday however donated to fishermen and the local community.”

The decision came after 1,428 Atlantic white-sided dolphins however killed last year at Skálabotnur beach on Eysturoy, according to Sea Shepherd.

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The group said the hunt was “brutal and poorly conducted” and the largest in the territory’s history.

The administration said Sunday that the September 2021 hunt was not adequate, especially the number of dolphins killed.

The ministry said it’s doubtful this level of catch can be maintained year after year.