Reply #23: About the effect of the hunt on the economy: [View All]

"Is the Seal Hunt Economically Important?

No. Sealing is an off-season activity conducted by fishermen from Canada's East Coast. They make, on average, one twentieth of their incomes from seal hunting and the rest from commercial fisheries. Even in Newfoundland, where 90% of sealers live, revenues from the hunt account for less than 1% of the province's economy and only 2% of the landed value of the fishery. According to the Newfoundland government, out of a population of half a million people, about 4,000 fishermen participate in the seal hunt each year.

The commercial seal hunt is an activity that Canada's federal government could easily replace with economic alternatives, should it choose to do so.

Does the Government Subsidize the Hunt?

Yes. According to reports from the Canadian Institute for Business and the Environment, more than $20 million in subsidies were provided to the sealing industry between 1995 and 2001. Those subsidies came from entities such as the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, Human Resources Development Council, and Canada Economic Development–Quebec. These subsidies take a variety of forms, including funding the salaries for seal processing plant workers, market research and development trips, and capital acquisitions for processing plants.

Moreover, Canada's commercial seal hunt is also indirectly subsidized by the Norwegian government. A Norwegian company purchases close to 80% of the sealskins produced in Canada in any given year through its Canadian subsidiary. These skins are shipped in an unprocessed state directly to Norway, where they are tanned and re-exported. The Norwegian government provides significant financial assistance to this company each year. "

http://www.hsus.org/marine_mammals/protect_seals/about_the_canadian_seal_hunt/index.html

I agree that leather is unneeded, but it really has nothing to do with this (since you're comparing a farmed animal killed primarily for other reasons with a wild one killed almost exclusively for the value of it's skin.) However if you really want to start a discussion about the use of leather in another thread I'd be happy to bring my thoughts on the subject.