TOKYO, (Kyodo) -- An institute commissioned by the Japanese government to undertake "research whaling" has decided on specifics of a sales plan for meat from whales it caught in the Antarctic Ocean between last November and March, institute officials said Wednesday.
The plan covers 1,995 tons of meat from 440 minke whales, the largest-ever volume for sale from the whaling program, the officials of the Institute of Cetacean Research said.
The meat will be sold mostly to processors of canned foods, they said, with some sold for general consumption as well as school-lunch programs.
They said proceeds from the sale, projected at 3.5 billion yen, will be used to finance research.
The wholesale price of prime-quality red meat for general consumption will be 3,840 yen per kilogram, unchanged from the previous catch from the North Atlantic in summer 1996, they said. The retail price will be three times as high,they said.
Whale meat is fetching high prices due to limited supply because commercial whaling is banned, industry sources said.
The institute has been selling meat from whales under what is termed research, which is permitted under an internation treaty. The institute says such research, commissioned by the Fisheries Agency, involves studies on habitat and other matters related to whales.