Switch to whale steak instead of opting for the regular bovine variety to help in the fight against Global Warming. That’s the message from whaling supporters of the High North Alliance.

The best thing you can do for planet earth is to eat whale meat instead of meat from other animals,” says Rune Frøvik, president of the High North Alliance.

According to a new study, the emissions from one beef meal equal that of eight whale meals. Lamb, pork, chicken and several kinds of seafood all produce much larger quantities of climate changing gases than whale.

The study is based on emission statistics from eight whaling ships. In 2007 the ships brought in 461 tonnes of whale meat, using 295 thousand litres of diesel fuel in the process. This gives a carbon footprint of 1.9 kilos of CO2 per kilo of whale meat. The number for beef is 15.8, lamb is 17.4, pork is 6.4 and chicken is 4.6.

Greenpeace gives the study a cold shoulder, stating that the protection of the species far outweighs climate protection in this instance.

It is more important that the species survives than that we can reduce our climate emissions by eating it,” says Truls Gulowsen of Greenpeace Norway.

He adds that almost every other kind of food produces lower emissions than meat and that fish and other seafood in general have lower emissions. According to the High North Alliance, fish caught close to shore produce lower emissions than whale meat (fish however, tastes like fish while whale meat is comparable to beef).

[Sources: Aftenposten article (in Norwegian) & Original Study (in Norwegian)]

Angela and I tried whale meat for the first time during our last trip to Norway (the photo above is of the packaging it came in). But WAIT! Before you crucify us, you should get the whole story:

We were told that Norwegians capture whales for research and that the meat is sold so that it doesn’t go to waste. Inhumane as this may sound to some, we’re not talking about your loveable Shamus and (if you’re from Vancouver, Lunas) of the sea world. The species that is hunted is a type of grey whale called Minke (balaenoptera acutorostrata). In 2004, it was estimated that the oceans outside of Norway had over 107,000 of them. This means that they are proportionally overpopulated compared to overfished species and as a result, they deplete the natural fish stocks.

Whaling is also very strictly controlled – the 2005 quota for instance, was 670 whales (that’s 0.62%). We were assured that this type of whale has a stable population and that their capture does not threaten the species. Whale meat is common in Norway and can be found in the frozen meat section of any supermarket in that country.

When you think about it…is this really more inhumane than the way they treat the chickens that end up as nuggets? Or the bull fighting in Spain?

If the horror has dissipated somewhat and you’re curious about the taste, I’d say it’s a cross between beef and liver. Not my meat of preference, but when in Norway!