Rotterdam bans shipping of whale meat

Six containers of whale meat have been sent back to Iceland after German authorities removed the controversial cargo from a ship bound for Japan. The batch was first stopped by German customs in Hamburg, where the containers were unloaded and then sent back via Rotterdam in the Netherlands. Samskip, a Netherlands-based shipping firm involved in the original transit of the containers from Iceland to Rotterdam said it would not ship any more whale meat, agreeing to let another firm handle the return journey.

Legally speaking, there is no way of prohibiting the transit of whale meat but due to the social and political objections to whaling and transport of the meat via Rotterdam, the Port Authority asked shipping lines and terminal operators to stop shipping whale meat to Rotterdam. Furthermore, the Port of Rotterdam Authority calls on other port authorities in Europe to renounce whale meat.