An Air Greenland aerial bridge which delivered live snow crab from Greenland to Denmark has been criticised by Dyrenes Beskyttelse
“Greenlandic giant crabs have been flown alive for auction in Denmark for the first time. It is celebrated by fishermen and the airline, but it happens at the expense of the crabs,” claims Danish animal welfare group, Dyrenes Beskyttelse.
The recent decision to fly live snow crabs from Greenland to Denmark for auction has stirred up controversy, with animal welfare advocates condemning the practice as inhumane.
Last week, Air Greenland announced the arrival of the first 560 live crabs for auction in Denmark, hailing it as a historic milestone for the fishing industry. However, animal protection organisation Dyrenes Beskyttelse has strongly criticised the move, emphasising the negative impact on the welfare of the crabs.
Nicolaj Lindeborgh, a biologist at Dyrenes Beskyttelse, expressed concern over the treatment of animals as mere commodities, stating, “We do not want to treat animals in this way, where everything indicates that the animal is only considered to be a commodity when it is transported alive in order to obtain a higher price.”
While it is not uncommon for marine animals like lobsters to be delivered alive to restaurants and consumers, Dyrenes Beskyttelse argues that fixed flights with live crabs packed together in cramped conditions are unacceptable. Lindeborgh highlighted the stress and potential suffering experienced by the crabs during transportation, noting that such conditions are vastly different from their natural habitat in the water.
Air Greenland, however, has defended its actions, citing the successful delivery of the crabs to the fish auction in Hanstholm. Søren Støvhase Nørsø, the airline’s cargo sales manager, expressed satisfaction that only 13 crabs out of 500 kilos perished during the journey. Nonetheless, Dyrenes Beskyttelse remains steadfast in its opposition to the practice, arguing that any loss of life during transportation is unacceptable.
” It is unacceptable that you send animals off on a journey where it sounds like you don’t even expect them to survive. One can rightly imagine that the trip was therefore not very pleasant for those who actually survived, explains Nicolaj Lindeborgh.
“Crabs can feel both pain and stress. It is precisely stress that is most likely the cause of death for the crabs, which are brought into a situation that is completely different from their natural environment in the water. The capture and placement in a small flamingo box, where it is stowed together with its fellow species and must be flown for several hours to Copenhagen before it is driven on to Hanstholm, all accumulate to an unpleasant and, for some, deadly, stressful experience for the animal.”
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