REYKJAVIK– The dim, warm lights illuminate the wooden tables dressed in homely floral tablecloths. Perched on a shelf by the counter is a taxidermy mount of the Atlantic Puffin bird, paying homage to the restaurant’s best-selling traditional delicacy: smoked puffin breast with mustard sauce.
At first glance, 3 Frakkar is a quaint eatery tucked away in a residential area of Reykjavik that promises authentic Icelandic cuisine. Yet, the chatter that filled the room was not Icelandic, but a mix of English, German and French. The diners were not locals seeking comfort food – but visitors eager to sample the unique flavours of Iceland.
For many locals, however, eating puffin may be a thing of the past as climate change, habitat destruction and overhunting have reduced the supply of puffin meat, driving prices up.
“The last time I ate puffin was more than 20 years ago in the Westman Islands,” said Mr Harald Isakssen, 63, a Reykjavik local. He cites the puffin’s dwindling numbers as his main reason for not eating its meat.
The seabird with the bright orange beak and feet is a belovednational icon of Iceland, and can be found everywhere in the country of fewer than 400,000 people – on postcards, T-shirts, mugs and as stuffed toys in the windows of souvenir shops.
To see the real birds, however, tourists must join puffin tours which take themtoislands where the puffins flock to nest in the summer months.
But visitors also want to eat them. To meet demand, restaurants source thousands of smoked puffins from hunters each summer, freezing the stock to last throughout the year.
Mr Stefan Ulfarsson, 55, chef and owner of 3 Frakkar, said: “People call the restaurant to ask if we serve puffin meat before coming in. Some customers even tell me they came to Iceland just to try it.
“I don’t think there’s anything wrong with serving puffin meat. I’m happy that people from all over the world are curious to try our traditional food.”
Puffin hunting and consumption in Iceland dates back to the Middle Ages, when coastal settlers relied on its meat for survival. Today, Iceland is the only country in the world where puffin hunting is legal on the grounds of tradition.
Recent figures from the Environment Agency of Iceland show that about 23,000 puffins were hunted in 2023, compared with 250,000 in 1995. Still, conservationists are agitating for a complete ban on puffin hunting, and even the sale of its meat, now consumed mainly by tourists eager for an “authentic” culinary experience.
Meanwhile, the puffin population in Iceland has declined drastically, from eight million in 1995 to 3.5 million in 2022, according tothe South Iceland Nature Research Centre. In addition to other human activity, warming seas have reduced the number of sand eels – the main food source for puffins – leading to fewer chicks and lower survival rates of the species.
Nowhere in Iceland is the dwindling puffin population more obvious than on the Westman Islands off the southern coast of the Icelandic mainland, which have historically been home to the country’s largest puffin colony.
Puffins burrowing on grassy islands and cliffs along Iceland’s coasts, where they lay eggs and raise their young pufflings.PHOTO: ERIC TEO
While there is no ban on puffin hunting in Iceland, the Environment and Planning Council of the Westman Islands imposes temporary restrictions on hunting depending on the puffin population.
In 2024, puffin hunting in the Westman Islands was restricted to 15 days, a reduction from the usual six-week season.
Those living on the islands still consume the meat a few times a year on special occasions such as Thjodhadid, a national festival in the region that is held over the first weekend of August. Younger Icelanders are less keen.
“My daughters and grandchildren don’t like it as much as I do. They don’t think it’s tasty,” said Mr Eythor Hardarson, 60, a city council board member and chairman of the Puffin Hunting Association on the Westman Islands.
Dr Erpur Snaer Hansen, director of the South Iceland Nature Research Centre, said puffin hunting exacerbates the population decline. “The hunting, even at these low numbers, is unsustainable, and adds to the natural declines.”
Puffins spend eight months of the year out at sea, bobbing on the ocean and diving for small fish. They come ashore only in the summer to mate and nest.PHOTO: ERIC TEO
A study he conducted with scientists from Denmark and Vancouver in Canadashowed that only 4 per cent to 5 per cent of puffins should be hunted each year for the puffin population to remain stable. But the reality, said Dr Hansen, is that some 10 per cent are caught.
“The young birds would have produced many offspring in 10 years or so. But by hunting them at a young age, you’re taking all of that away,” Dr Hansen said.
Hunters, however, argue that they are being responsible.
Mr Hardarson said: “We take care of the puffins. We don’t hunt the puffins when the stock is going down or if they have problems with feeding.”
For instance, hunters avoid capturing puffins flying with fish in their mouths, as it indicates that they have offspring to feed, he added.
Nonetheless, experts remain concerned that the commercial appetite for puffin among tourists in restaurants could speed up the species’ decline.
Mr Trausti Gunnarsson, vice-chair of BirdLife Iceland, a non-governmental organisation focused on bird conservation, said: “Professional hunters are selling their puffin to restaurants willing to pay any price. That’s an incentive to continue the harvesting. If it was just hunting as a tradition for their families, it would be much less impactful on the population.”
Is there a compromise to be struck between protecting the species and conserving heritage?
Mr Bjarni Jonasson, leader of wildlife management at the Environment Agency of Iceland, said: “Puffin hunting is a part of our culture and tradition, but we need to do it sustainably.”
Experts are concerned that the commercial appetite for puffin among tourists in restaurants could worsen the species’ decline. PHOTO: JOVIANNE TAN
The agency is pushing for a sales ban on puffin meat. This would eliminate the financial incentive for hunters to sell their catch to restaurants, thus curbing overhunting while still preserving the tradition.
Still, rapidly changing environmental factors are constantly redefining what constitutes “sustainable” hunting of the seabird, which is classified as vulnerable by BirdLife International.
There are others who feel that puffin hunting and consumption as a whole should come to an end.
Ms Anna Richter, 31, a naturalist who conducts puffin-watching tours, said: “It’s an outdated tradition. Times have changed; there are so many other ways for humans to get food than hunting puffins.”
Jovianne Tan is a final-year communication studies student at Nanyang Technological University’s Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information in Singapore. This story was produced as part of the school’s Going Overseas For Advanced Reporting, or Go-Far, module.
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Publish date : 2024-12-31 13:00:00
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