In the Faroe Islands, located between Iceland and Norway in the Atlantic Ocean, more than 450 orca whales have been killed in a grisly whale hunt organized every year.

The shores turn red every year during Grindadrap` (whale hunts) with the blood of the pilot whales that are driven towards shallow waters and killed with a spinal lance` that kills them instantly by breaking the spine.

An official said that the hunts are “dramatic”, but “well organized and fully regulated.” He added that since less than 1 percent of the whales are killed during the hunts per year (800 whales on an average out of the 778,000 in the North Atlantic Ocean), the hunts were internationally recognized as “fully sustainable”.

The whales are not an endangered species. Moreover, the meat and blubber are shared among the local community. But, undoubtedly, there are protests to stop this annual hunt.