Japanese Firm Chops up Moby Dick for Vending Machines

Hunting whales for meat has been losing its mojo in Japan for years, but a Japanese whaling firm is looking to revive the industry. Last month Kyodo Senpaku introduced three whale-meat vending machines in Yokohama aimed at re-whetting the nation’s appetite.

The unmanned machines dispense frozen and canned selections of whale sashimi, whale bacon, whale skin,  and whale steak, priced between 1,000 yen to 3,000 yen ($7-$23). Kyodo Senpaku placed the new vending machines near supermarkets that are resistant to restocking their own shelves with whale meat because they don’t want to attract the aggravation and poor press that would come with the inevitable protests.

Whale consumption in Japan has dropped off since peak demand of 230,000 tons annually in the 1960s; these days it’s closer to 1000 tons. Years of protests and international pressure dampened the appetite for whale meat, but both the government and big business have tried to keep the industry alive.

As part of the International Whaling Commission, Japan had curtailed its whale hunts but continued to take a limited number of whales for “research purposes,” a euphemism that didn’t really fool anyone, since whale meat continued to arrive on supermarket shelves, albeit in decreasing quantity.

The country abandoned the ruse in 2019 when it left the IWC. The government imposed a quota, capping the total catch at 347 whales for 2023. Three species are for the taking – minke, Bryde’s, and sei whales.

Kyodo Senpaku is clearly betting the demand will be there. The firm has begun importing nearly 3000 tons of whale meat from Scandinavian whalers and plans to place no less than 100 of the vending machines at select locations. On behalf of whales everywhere, here’s hoping their efforts fail.

Photo credit: whalemeat: Ha Kwiyeon / AP