Both the narwhal and polar bear quotas in Ittoqqortoormiit have been exhausted since the spring, and the hunters have no income opportunities in the coming months. The hunters’ association says that if nothing is done about it, the hunting industry could become extinct. 

Since Ittoqqortoormiit was founded in 1925, the hunting industry has been the most important livelihood for many families.

Siden Ittoqqortoormiit blev

But that may be a thing of the past in the coming years, because even though there is plenty of game near the country’s most isolated town, the strict hunting restrictions of recent years have meant that hunters do not have hunting quotas for most of the year, and the indispensable Greenlandic foods for hunter families have now become a serious shortage.

Since Ittoqqortoormiit was founded in 1925, the hunting industry has been the most important livelihood for many families.

Siden Ittoqqortoormiit blevAnnouncement

But that may be a thing of the past in the coming years, because even though there is plenty of game near the country’s most isolated town, the strict hunting restrictions of recent years have meant that hunters do not have hunting quotas for most of the year, and the indispensable Greenlandic foods for hunter families have now become a serious shortage.

This is what Åge Hammeken Danielsen, chairman of the prisoners’ association in Ittoqqortoormiit, says.

This year, the quota of 35 polar bears in Ittoqqortoormiit was exhausted in April, and the quota of 17 narwhals was exhausted in one day, which meant that the narwhal hunt was closed in mid-May. The living conditions of the hunters and their families have been severely affected, so that they do not have enough of the necessities of life.

– Urgent political steps should be taken to rectify the difficult living conditions for the prisoners in Ittoqqortoormiit, says member of Inatsisartut for Siumut Lars Poulsen from Kulusuk.

Living conditions have become more difficult

Before the restrictions on narwhals were introduced, around 100 narwhals were caught per year in Ittoqqortoormiit. The quotas have been greatly reduced in recent years, which has had a severe impact on living conditions.

In East Greenland, the quotas for whales have been drastically reduced in recent years, and although previously only around 100 whales were caught per year, this has had serious consequences for living conditions. In Ittoqqortoormiit, a kilo of mattak (whale skin, ed.) costs 250 DKK and a kilo of meat costs 75 DKK.

– Narwhal hunting is the most important industry in the town, but the quota has become so small that the hunters cannot sell their catch because they have to have their own meat and matak. And if the hunters cannot sell their catch, they have no income, says Åge Hammeken Danielsen, a father of four.

Food prices are rising, and fuel prices rose in May, making life very difficult for hunters and those with children, he emphasizes.

A bleak future

According to Statistics Greenland, Ittoqqortoormiit had 539 inhabitants in 2006, but over the years the population has decreased. Last year in 2024 there were 363 inhabitants, and this year the number has decreased to 324 – a decrease of 41 inhabitants in one year.

– The declining population is partly due to the fact that life has become more difficult. My wife and I have a commercial hunting license, but if the quota is not increased, we will be forced to stop hunting, so the future is bleak, says Åge Hammeken Danielsen.

The winter hunt for musk oxen in the Ittoqqortoormiit area lasts from March 1 to 31, and the quota is 60 musk oxen.

You can buy sealskins in Ittoqqortoormiit starting in September, and that is the only thing that will provide the hunters with a financial income until the end of the year, says Åge Hammeken Danielsen.

Hvidhvaler

The hunters say that the population of belugas and narwhals in East Greenland is increasing. Biological researchers at the Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, however, say that belugas rarely come to East Greenland, and that quotas are therefore not recommended, and that the narwhals are endangered.

To meet the wishes of the hunters and secure the meat supply, an additional technical quota of 30 belugas has been allocated to East Greenland for 2022-2027. The Tasiilaq management area has already exhausted its quota of 15 belugas by the end of 2022, while the rest of the quota will be deducted from the catches in 2023 and 2024. 

Since Ittoqqortoormiit was founded in 1925, the hunting industry has been the most important livelihood for many families.

Siden Ittoqqortoormiit blev

But that may be a thing of the past in the coming years, because even though there is plenty of game near the country’s most isolated town, the strict hunting restrictions of recent years have meant that hunters do not have hunting quotas for most of the year, and the indispensable Greenlandic foods for hunter families have now become a serious shortage.

Since Ittoqqortoormiit was founded in 1925, the hunting industry has been the most important livelihood for many families.

Siden Ittoqqortoormiit blevAnnouncement

But that may be a thing of the past in the coming years, because even though there is plenty of game near the country’s most isolated town, the strict hunting restrictions of recent years have meant that hunters do not have hunting quotas for most of the year, and the indispensable Greenlandic foods for hunter families have now become a serious shortage.

This is what Åge Hammeken Danielsen, chairman of the prisoners’ association in Ittoqqortoormiit, says.

This year, the quota of 35 polar bears in Ittoqqortoormiit was exhausted in April, and the quota of 17 narwhals was exhausted in one day, which meant that the narwhal hunt was closed in mid-May. The living conditions of the hunters and their families have been severely affected, so that they do not have enough of the necessities of life.

– Urgent political steps should be taken to rectify the difficult living conditions for the prisoners in Ittoqqortoormiit, says member of Inatsisartut for Siumut Lars Poulsen from Kulusuk.

Living conditions have become more difficult

Before the restrictions on narwhals were introduced, around 100 narwhals were caught per year in Ittoqqortoormiit. The quotas have been greatly reduced in recent years, which has had a severe impact on living conditions.

In East Greenland, the quotas for whales have been drastically reduced in recent years, and although previously only around 100 whales were caught per year, this has had serious consequences for living conditions. In Ittoqqortoormiit, a kilo of mattak (whale skin, ed.) costs 250 DKK and a kilo of meat costs 75 DKK.

– Narwhal hunting is the most important industry in the town, but the quota has become so small that the hunters cannot sell their catch because they have to have their own meat and matak. And if the hunters cannot sell their catch, they have no income, says Åge Hammeken Danielsen, a father of four.

Food prices are rising, and fuel prices rose in May, making life very difficult for hunters and those with children, he emphasizes.

A bleak future

According to Statistics Greenland, Ittoqqortoormiit had 539 inhabitants in 2006, but over the years the population has decreased. Last year in 2024 there were 363 inhabitants, and this year the number has decreased to 324 – a decrease of 41 inhabitants in one year.

– The declining population is partly due to the fact that life has become more difficult. My wife and I have a commercial hunting license, but if the quota is not increased, we will be forced to stop hunting, so the future is bleak, says Åge Hammeken Danielsen.

The winter hunt for musk oxen in the Ittoqqortoormiit area lasts from March 1 to 31, and the quota is 60 musk oxen.

You can buy sealskins in Ittoqqortoormiit starting in September, and that is the only thing that will provide the hunters with a financial income until the end of the year, says Åge Hammeken Danielsen.

Hvidhvaler

The hunters say that the population of belugas and narwhals in East Greenland is increasing. Biological researchers at the Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, however, say that belugas rarely come to East Greenland, and that quotas are therefore not recommended, and that the narwhals are endangered.

To meet the wishes of the hunters and secure the meat supply, an additional technical quota of 30 belugas has been allocated to East Greenland for 2022-2027. The Tasiilaq management area has already exhausted its quota of 15 belugas by the end of 2022, while the rest of the quota will be deducted from the catches in 2023 and 2024.