Sealord protests at whaling accusation

The fishing company Sealord says it is being wrongly targeted by a Greenpeace campaign implicating it in commercial whaling.

Greenpeace launched an international campaign yesterday, urging Sealord to persuade its Japanese co-owner Nissui to stop commercial whaling.

Sealord is jointly owned by Aotearoa Fisheries and the Japanese seafoodcompany Nippon Suisan Kaisha (Nissui).

Greenpeace launched the campaign in the wake of recent conflicts between Greenpeace and a Japanese whaling fleet in the Southern Ocean.

Pia Mancia, of Greenpeace, said at the launch of the campaign yesterday that many New Zealanders did not know Sealord was half-owned by an organisation that was deeply involved in commercial whaling.

"Not only does Nissui own a large share of the whaling company Kyodo Senpaku, but it is also responsible for putting the whale meat into cans and distributing it to Japanese supermarkets."

Sealord chief executive Doug McKay said Sealord had never been involved in commercial whaling.

"They're targeting the wrong person."

Mr McKay said that although Greenpeace was effectively asking the company to influence the other major shareholder of Sealord, Aotearoa Fisheries had consistently made its views, the New Zealand Government's views and public sentiment known to Nissui.

"So we have already been doing what Greenpeace is asking us to do."

Aotearoa Fisheries had come out strongly in the past opposing commercial whaling and the campaign was misplaced, said Mr McKay.

Nissui had been told "100 times" about the strength of feeling on the issue in New Zealand.

Greenpeace is asking people to send a "cyber protest" to Sealord through the Greenpeace website.

- NZPA