Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society News
Agreement Signed Between Jojoba Association and Whale Conservation Group
PHOENIX, May 7 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — WDCS, the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society and the International Jojoba Export Council (IJEC) have signed a memorandum of agreement reflecting their mutual interest in ending the commercial hunting of whales and trade in whale oil.
At a signing ceremony in Phoenix, Arizona, Sue Fisher, a Policy Director of WDCS and Steve Brown, Secretary of the IJEC, recorded the interest of their organizations in preventing commercial whaling and trade, and minimizing economic incentives for the products of whales.
Commercial demand for whale oil once drove an industrial-scale slaughter of whales that pushed many species to the brink of extinction. Before commercial whaling and international trade in whale products were banned in 1986, spermaceti from whales was widely used as an emollient in cosmetics and in topical pharmaceuticals.
As the whaling bans took effect, cosmetics companies found jojoba esters to be a virtual match to spermaceti. In fact, the two compounds share basically identical chemical structures. This makes both compounds desirable as very high-end skin emollients. Producing spermaceti, however, requires killing whales; producing jojoba esters requires harvesting seeds from a desert shrub.
But whales are still hunted in defiance of the whaling ban and WDCS fears that imprecise cosmetic labeling laws could allow spermaceti to be hidden in international trade.
WDCS recently opposed a tariff on imports of jojoba esters into the European Union, a hub of the cosmetics industry. As Sue Fisher, WDCS, notes, "Any tariff on jojoba imports to Europe essentially subsidizes whaling; giving the whaling nations a greater financial incentive not only to hunt, but also to lobby for the ban to be lifted. Whales are under enough pressure; renewed commercial interest in one of their products is the last thing they need. WDCS is, therefore, delighted to sign an agreement with the IJEC, acknowledging our mutual interest in protecting whales".
Steve Brown, Secretary for the IJEC added "We deeply support the goal of preventing the resurgence of commercial whaling and especially trade in spermaceti. The whaling ban was instrumental to jojoba's birth over thirty years ago. Since then, we have grown and learned, and because jojoba esters share the exact same chemistry as whale oil and its derivatives, we believe we can now give something meaningful back to whale conservation."
Media Contacts
Sue Fisher, WDCS: 503-235-7050
Steve Brown, IJEC: 480-545-7000
SOURCE Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society
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