Does your nation practice whaling?
If so, how many whales are taken each year?
How are whales caught?
Are there limit quotas on production?
What products do you make from whales?
In Volmachtia, especially in small towns on the northern coast of the Continent, whaling remains an aspect of daily life. Last year a total of 3,300 whales larger than 50 tons were caught, and around twenty thousand smaller ones were also caught. There are some flexible limits on how many can be caught, usually aimed at keeping the population roughly as large in the future as it is today.
The most common caught whale is the 12-ton Breek Whale, which is usually caught by a whaling ship that first detects the whale using sonar, and then impales it with a harpoon, reeling it in. The crew then wraps it up in a net, which they use to scrape barnacles and any similar things off of the whale's skin. The skin is then carved off piece by piece, then the blubber is removed and carved into neat rectangles. The meat is then removed and packaged. The ship returns usually after three catches. The whale's useful blubber and meat is all carved off well prior to returning to port, then the valueless corpses are dumped into the ocean for scavengers.
Products made from whale blubber include a kind of fatty liquid used as flavoring in classy Ostrach cafes, as well as a lighting fuel for the poorer, more isolated whaler communities. The blubber is also used as ingredients in perfume and occasionally, for people that can stomach its strong taste, a delicacy once properly prepared.
Whale meat and skin is also very valuable, normally converted either into jerky or whale steaks. Whale jerky is a common sight in northern cities like Haele and Rossburg, a large bag costing little more than a couple Volmarks, or 4 NSD. Whale steaks are a delicacy, and noted for their rich, sweet, juicy taste. A good whale steak can cost up to 50 dollars depending on the level of preparation and serving size. Whale skin is commonly used as either leather or can be boiled to produce a stringy jerky-like foodstuff.
