humpback whale   My colleague at Greenpeace Japan, Junichi Sato,
has informed me that the most likely scenario for the early
closure is because Japan is already burdened with excess stocks
of whale meat. As of August 2010, there were over 5,700 tons of
whale meat in frozen storage, over a year's supply.  There is a
real lack of whale meat consumption in Japan. Each year, Japan
kills more whales, while the Japanese people back home are
consuming less and less each year.  This year, the whalers sent
out a smaller fleet than in past years, and stayed out for less
time.    It is getting harder every year for the whaling
industry to maintain enough domestic support to keep getting the
government subsidies they need to operate.  We will keep up the
pressure both in Japan and around the world until the whaling
fleet stays home for good.