Iceland to submit bill banning commercial whaling, leaving only Norway and Japan

Iceland's government is moving toward ending one of the world's last remaining commercial whaling operations. In February 2027, the country will submit legislation that could permanently prohibit whaling in its waters—a shift that would leave only Norway and Japan as nations still permitting the hunt.

The momentum behind the ban traces to a single, damning finding. In 2023, Iceland's own government commissioned a report on the practice and discovered that harpooned whales were taking approximately two hours to die. The report's conclusions triggered immediate pressure: that same year, the government suspended hunting temporarily. The findings have since become the centerpiece of arguments for a permanent end to the industry.

Iceland's industries minister, Hanna Katrín Friðriksson, has already signaled support for the change, describing the country's whaling laws as outdated and calling for reform. The announcement on the government's website reflects what appears to be substantial political will. Animal welfare advocates see the bill as a watershed moment. Wendy Higgins, representing Humane World for Animals, called it a "significant milestone," noting that "considerable political and public support" exists for the measure, alongside what she described as "compelling ethical, veterinary, legal and conservation reasons" for the ban to succeed.

The scale of Iceland's current whaling operation is modest but consequential. As of early September 2026, hunters had caught 80 fin whales in Icelandic waters. The hunting season runs through the end of September, and Iceland's annual quota permits up to 150 animals. Fin whales are the second-largest creatures on Earth, surpassed only by blue whales. Despite their size, they are classified as vulnerable to extinction by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, a status that persists even after decades of recovery following the international commercial whaling moratorium established in 1986.

Only one company still operates in Iceland's whaling industry: Hvalur, owned by Kristján Loftsson. An interim government granted the company a five-year permit that runs until 2029—a detail that complicates the timeline of any ban. Even if legislation passes, existing permits may be allowed to expire naturally rather than be revoked immediately. Higgins acknowledged this reality, saying that while campaigners want immediate cessation, "it's likely that the current whaling permits, which expire in 2029, will be allowed to run their course."

The broader context underscores how isolated Iceland's position has become. Just three countries have engaged in commercial whaling in recent years. Norway resumed the practice in 1993, defying the international moratorium. Iceland followed suit in 2006. Japan withdrew from the International Whaling Commission entirely in 2019 and resumed commercial whaling in its own waters. If Iceland's bill succeeds, that leaves two outliers—Norway and Japan—continuing a practice that most of the world has abandoned.

Sharon Livermore, director of marine conservation at the International Fund for Animal Welfare, framed the potential ban as part of a larger shift toward modern conservation standards. For a nation whose economy depends heavily on ocean health, she suggested, updating laws that permit whaling represents a step toward alignment with contemporary marine science and animal welfare standards. The bill's passage remains uncertain, but the political direction appears set.