Amazon Japan profiting from slaughter of whales, dolphins: investigation agency

@JGal - As per Jonathon Swift: "I have been assured by a very knowing American of my acquaintance in London, that a young healthy child well nursed, is, at a year old, a most delicious nourishing and wholesome food, whether stewed, roasted, baked, or boiled; and I make no doubt that it will equally serve in a fricasie, or a ragoust."

Banning sales on Amazon Japan doesn't mean you can't buy whale products from other countries like Norway.

Japan gal u don't seem to understand they are endangered that means if u eat them no matter how good they taste there won't be any left for ur children to eat plus it has an impact on other creatures that feed on them and that they feed on too upsetting the balance and destroying a magnificent creature.

This article reminds me of a documentary "What to Do About Whales?" talks about, the industry to whale meat being sold on the open market and skillfully enters the international debate over the future of the world’s whales.

To watch the documentary please visit - http://www.cultureunplugged.com/play/7084

Oh dear. And so the plot thickens. Before we know it, there will be an eco-hacker group called 'Internet Shepherd' trying to take down Amazon Japan.

Whale meat contains heavy metal: Mercury; Organochlorines: PCB, DDT, & CH; Other Persistent Organic Pollutants: PBDE & Co. ...and I am sure Amazon probably did not notify customers of these health benefits.

Time to stop shopping on Amazon Japan until they get this issue resolved.

@Al Stewart

Of all the whale species, some of the ones reportedly sold are not on the research list, but rather on the endangered whale species.

Which means that the ones fishing these whales are different from the ones who travel to Antartica annually. Please look up the other article: http://www.japantoday.com/category/crime/view/marshall-islands-fine-japanese-ship-for-violating-shark-fin-ban

I imagine that this wasn't actually Amazon selling these products, but rather a local, third-party seller using the Amazon website to hawk their wares.

wow, didnt know about this. Good to hear they took it off. Shouldnt this new hit JP directly as they did not catch it nor did they try to catch and instead made a profit off of the taxing of each item sold?

If they are only doing research on the whales how can they sell what is not used? I dont understand that. could some one explain it to me?

JGal, You are misinformed.

“The vast majority of Americans and nations around the globe oppose the commercial slaughter of whales,

Bull dinky.

Mr. Sushi, you will love the bacon. Blubber is good too with soy and spicy mustard.

I did a search in Amazon Japan just now for whale meat. Lots of books and dvds on the subject of whales, but nothing about getting them to your table.

Amazon Japan has solid policies in place to keep certain objectionable products off the market, so from all appearances this is also being done for our cetacean friends.

Amazon by its very nature is an ally of conservationists. The fuel saved from being able to shop from home is major. Sure, a truck delivers it -- but each item in that truckload essentially represents one shopping trip that did not have to be taken by a consumer. More than one, if you consider all the unsuccessful trips made to find something.

If Amazon Japan did carry whale products before, kudos to them for eventually wising up.

Seriously? it's not legal to import whale from Norway? What about the other meats which I reckon as just as poor taste. http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=bl_sr_grocery?_encoding=UTF8&node=16310101&field-brandtextbin=Exotic%20Meats%20USA%20%C2%AE

Is this news worth posting? JT likes news about whales, maybe too much.

I did not know Amazon sold it. Amazon should have made use of this free publicity, to compete with Rakuten, which has many whale products available.

This is a newswire story, so I'm not going to blame JT... but this article doesn't even mention "Amazon.com couldn't be reached for comment", let alone any quotes from Amazon = pretty one-sided journalism to me.

Amazon?.. good, i was looking for a place to buy some whale meat and bacon... i have had a craving ever since Whale Wars.... if i can't get it now, i will definately try it when i make my first trip to Japan.

Analysis revealed six of them to have mercury levels exceeding the Japanese national limit for mercury in seafood of 0.4 parts per million and one had a staggering mercury level of 20ppm, which is 50 times the safe limit............................

for the buyers, " serve " them right. Enjoy.

Very typical in Japan's trade nowadays ... support this, support that ... but in the end, nothing but a show. All in the name of profits and kizuna.

fin, sei, minke and Bryde’s whales, all protected from international trade. Despite this, several companies were selling endangered fin whale imported from Iceland.

So ... Japan is illegally selling products which were also bought from Iceland. Why does the article not say anything about Iceland investigation?

this is a scary story that a giant company like amazon began propaganda incitement on its site. basically foreign companies need to try to understand the country tradition. if i were an amazon user, i would stop using amazon.

Time for an Internet ban and DOS attacks. We'll get them to change their attitude real quick. Anonymous is the answer.

Iowan:

" Japan has fished responsibly centuries. "

Japan has fished responsibly for centuries in the Antarctic? Do give some references for that.

the Cable channel Animal Planet, the advertisers that run commercials during the show Whale Wars and the group Sea Shepherd profit from whale slaughter too,.

From what I read elsewhere, Amazon.co.jp had already removed all of these items from its site. Good for them - quick and decisive action is good to see.

Scimshaw is an ancient hobby. Eating whale is even older.

Whales, dolphins, and sharks may be threatened but don't blame Japan. Japan has fished responsibly centuries. Blame pollution.