Norway To Re-commence Trade In Minke Whale Products
Norway has announced that it will resume exports of whale meat and whale blubber for the first time since 1988. Norway intends to export 10-15 tonnes of frozen minke whale meat and blubber to Iceland. In order to be able to resume the export and import of whale products, Norway had asked Reykjavik to set up a DNA checking system which enables the importing and the exporting country to test any whale product in the market and trace its origin and whether it was sold legally; this system is now in place and exports can begin. "This is a happy day. The resumption of whale meat exports is one important step towards normalisation of the whaling issue," said Ole Mykleburst from the export company Mykleburst Trading Ltd. The High North Alliance, a pro-whaling lobby group, expects that the exports to Iceland will reopen exports — mainly of whale blubber — to Japan as well. Trade in whale meat and whale products is controlled by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES), while the International Whaling Commission (IWC) controls the hunting of whales. Japan, Norway and Iceland are partly exempted from the rules of both organisations regarding the commercial hunting of whales and the trade in whale products. Norway set its own catch quota to 671 minke whales for this season, and as Japan and Iceland are exempted from the trade ban on minke whales they can buy and sell products from minke whales. The issue of hunting whales and selling whale products has repeatedly been discussed in both of the international fora and is causing major political disagreements between the pro-whaling and the anti-whaling nations (see BRIDGES Trade BioRes, 13 June 2002). The shipment from Norway to Iceland with the frozen whale meat is expected to take place during the summer.
"Norway to define ban, resume whale exports to Iceland," REUTERS, 24 June 2002; "Iceland, Norway Resume International Whale Meat Trade," 21 June 2002.
‘Little To Celebrate’ On Environment Since Earth Summit, Brazil Says
As government officials and civil society groups met in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on 23-26 June for a symbolic handover of the torch of the 1992 Rio Earth Summit to South Africa, many were sceptical regarding environmental achievements since Rio and the difference that the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) can make. Officials from Brazil and other countries criticised the low rate at which the targets set in Rio had been fulfilled. "There is still a lot to be done and, unfortunately, very little to celebrate," Brazil’s President Fernando Henrique Cardoso said. "The Rio legacy is being threatened," he added. Brazil’s main objective at WSSD, according to Foreign Minister Celso Lafer, was the inclusion on the environmental agenda of three issues, namely technology transfer, development assistance and improved access for developing country’s agricultural exports to developed country markets. However, while delegates agreed on two-thirds of the Plan of Implementation for WSSD at the Fourth Preparatory Meeting in Bali, Indonesia, on 27 May - 7 June, the outstanding issues remained deadlocked, including trade and finance, globalisation and the relationship between multilateral environmental agreements and WTO rules (see BRIDGES Trade BioRes, 13 June 2002). 65,000 participants are expected to attend the World Summit, which will be held on 26 August - 4 September in Johannesburg, South Africa.
"Brazil leader says much still needed on environment," REUTERS, 26 June 2002; "Environment stressed at Rio talks," UN WIRE, 24 June 2002; "Brazil passes torch to South Africa," ENS, 25 June 2002.
Zimbabwe Concerned That GM Food Aid Might Jeopardise Beef Exports To EU
An official from Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Lands, Agriculture and Rural Resettlement said earlier this month that Zimbabwe’s decision to rejected several shipments of food aid, which had not been certified as free of genetically modified organisms (GMO), had been based on concerns that accepting the food donation of whole-grain maize might have a significant impact on the country’s beef exports to the EU. Zimbabwe, which usually exports 9.100 tonnes of beef to the EU, pointed out that farmers often used whole-grain maize as seed and not for consumption. "This could have created many problems for us; biotech-maize if eaten by livestock, would have jeopardised future Zimbabwe’s beef export to Europe," the official said. If the food donation had consisted of maize-meal, the country would not have had a problem with accepting the donation, he added. Zimbabwe’s rejection of the food aid had evoked strong reactions from various sectors as the World Food Programme (WFP) has estimated that 12,8 million people in southern Africa are currently threatened by food shortages, with Zimbabwe being one of the worst affected countries (see BRIDGES Weekly, 4 June 2002). The food donations were redirected to other African countries facing food shortages. Zimbabwe’s concerns come in the wake of a decision by the European Parliament’s Environment Committee to support amendments to the proposed EC regulation on GM labelling which would require products such as meat, cheese and eggs from animals fed with GMO feed be labelled (see related story, this issue).
"Zimbabwe Rejects U.S. food Aid Consignment," REUTERS, 1 June 2002; "Official says GM maize would have hit country’s beef exports," 17 June 2002.
Ivory And Whale Products Likely To Be Controversial At CITES Meeting
Member states of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) will discuss and decide over 54 submitted proposals on relaxing or strengthening the current restriction of trade in threatened plant and animal species. The two most controversial proposals submitted by the June deadline included a proposal by four African States to take up trade in ivory, and a proposal by Japan and Norway to restart trade in whale products. Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe requested one-time sales of ivory stocks between 10.000 and 30.000 kilos, as well as an annual quota between 2.000 and 5.000 kilo. Environmental NGOs and some countries, including India and Kenya, oppose legalising any form of ivory exports, fearing that it would trigger poaching. In 1997 CITES had waived its ban and had allowed Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe to make one-off sales of their ivory stocks. The proposal of Japan and Norway sought to re-commence the trade of some surplus whale meat and products stocked by Norway, including from north Atlantic and north Pacific minke whales and Pacific Bryde’s whales. Both proposals are expected to cause long discussions at the 12th Conference of the Parties to CITES in Santiago, Chile, on 3-15 November.
"African states seek lifting ban on ivory trade," REUTERS, 17 June 2002; "Rising trade in endangered species," THE DAILY NEWS, 20 June 2002.