SEAL

Text: Karina Moeller
Photos: Ciril Jazbec
Article from the former magazine, Greenland Today

The indispensable seal

In the modern society of Greenland, the seal is still a regular feature on the menu, and sealskin is used in clothing from the colorful traditional West Greenlandic outfit to modern high fashion designs.

In Greenland, hunting seals has always been practiced in a sustainable way. Among Greenlandic hunters, there is great awareness, appreciation, and respect when hunting and fishing.

The export of sealskin has fallen drastically since the EU banned the import of sealskin in 2009, even with the exception that Greenland can continue to export to EU countries. This is unfortunate for Greenland, especially for the hunters who rely on the income from such.

Seal on the menu

Seal meat is high in protein and the blubber helps keep people warm in the cold winter months. Before electricity blubber was used as a source of light, using a carved soapstone filled with blubber and Arctic cotton grass, moss, or dried rabbit droppings as a wick.

The most common way to eat seal in Greenland is suaasat, a soup made from meat, water, rice, and onions. Dried seal meat, eaten with blubber is also a more traditional way of enjoying it. Today people make all kinds of recipes, such as steak, stir fry, and roast with tender seal meat.

The many uses of seal skin

Seal skin is used to make clothing, boots, kayaks, bags, and today even in furniture design. There are small production companies in many cities and towns throughout Greenland that produce clothing sold locally. Great Greenland is a modern tanning and production company, that processes furs and sells high-fashion wear and other products made from sealskin.

Greet Greenland creates products incorporating the natural look of the skin, but they also tan or even dye the seal skin in different colors. The sealskin leather is thick and has natural »scratches« that give it a more rough look.

Fashion designers use seal skin in their designs

Today, more and more Greenlandic designers are popping up on the fashion scene. Many of them use sealskin and create contemporary patterns, designing coats, handbags, iPad covers, etc. Isaksen Design has collaborated with Great Greenland and created beautiful contemporary products made out of sealskin.

Else Lennert creates mostly gowns and dresses and uses seal skin as an accent to give her design a more dramatic effect. Bibi Chemnitz, a young innovative designer, recently experimented with using sealskin in her design and hopes to collaborate with Great Greenland in the future.

Sealfies and seal fashion at the Royal Gala

In recent years, many events and a new trend of taking »seal-fies« have been done to help promote the Inuit culture and the use of seal skin in a sustainable way. It is an uphill battle, as numerous celebrities and humanitarian groups have made public statements to ban seal hunting.
This trend is the consequence of the unethical methods used in commercial seal hunting in Canada, but unfortunately affects sustainable hunters around the world.

Another issue is that the eco-balance is disturbed by fewer seals hunted, as the seal eats fish, and that results in more seals and fewer fish in the waters.

In March 2014 a unique initiative was taken by the Greenlandic politician, who then served as a member of the Danish Parliament, Sara Olsvig. To show their support of the sustainable hunting practices in Greenland, she encouraged the parliament’s members to participate in a bi-partisan political statement by publicly wearing something made out of seal skin.

In April 2014 another event took place in Copenhagen, Denmark promoting and in support of the Greenlandic seal hunters organized by KNAPK (the Hunters Association in Greenland). KNAPK has initiated a campaign called Inuit Sila, that intends to inform the world about sustainable seal hunting in Greenland.

The hunter’s perspective

– Seal hunting has been part of the culture in Greenland for centuries. I have gone seal hunting since I was 7 years old. Hunting methods have changed over the years. We used to hunt with harpoons and nets. Today, it is forbidden to catch seals with nets, and rifles have replaced harpoons, says Albert Lukassen from Uummannaq.

– For many years, it was a good source of income selling the skins, but in recent years sales price of sealskin has fallen drastically, so it hardly makes sense to take the time to scrape and clean the skins. Seal hunt as income has slowly been replaced by fishing, but it is still a huge part of subsistence hunting.

– The seal is important, because it provides food on the table for the family, feeds the dogs, and provides clothes for the cold months. Seal meat and blubber also provide good energy and heat when you are out on long trips in the winter, Albert ends.

Read more articles from Guide to Greenland