European court upholds EU seal products ban

A court has upheld the European Union’s three-year-old ban on seal products, dealing another blow to Canada’s embattled sealing industry.

The General Court of the European Union issued a statement today saying it has rejected a challenge from a group that included the Canadian Fur Institute and the Inuit.

The Luxembourg-based court says the existing ban is valid because it fairly harmonizes the EU market while protecting the economic and social interests of Inuit communities.

Even though the Inuit have an exemption for selling their seal products in Europe, the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami wanted the ban struck down because the group believes its markets will dry up if a wider ban remains in place.

The ban has hurt Canada’s centuries-old commercial sealing industry, which landed only 38,000 harp seals in 2011, less than 10 per cent of the total allowable catch.

But the ban didn’t kill the hunt.

It has continued in the past two years thanks to $5 million in loans from the Newfoundland and Labrador government.