Pippa Middleton condemned for 'promoting whaling industry' by eating smoked whale

The Duchess of Cambridge's sister wrote about eating whale for a travel piece

Pippa Middleton's book sold around 2,000 copies in its first week despite a 50 per cent discount on the cover price, and a considerable publicity campaign by Penguin. She reportedly received a £400,000 advance (Getty Images)

Pippa Middleton has been condemned by animal welfare groups for eating smoked whale during a trip to Norway, who accused her of “promoting and condoning” the whaling industry.

The sister of the Duchess of Cambridge wrote about her controversial meal for a travel piece in The Telegraph. The article detailed her four-day "whistlestop tour" of the Sunnmore Alps, close to the sea port town of Alesund.

On the fourth day of her trip, the 31-year-old said she dined at the Juvet Landscape Hotel on the River Valdolla. It was here that she ate smoked whale as a starter, writing: “We dined on smoked whale carpaccio (which tastes similar to smoked salmon but looks more like venison carpaccio), followed by a signature rustic Norwegian dish of salted cod in tomato, with hunks of fresh homemade bread to mop up the sauce.”

Her decision to write about consuming whale sparked outrage among conservation groups, who slammed the columnist for not considering her prominent position in the public eye.

The UK-based Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC) organisation said it was “disappointed” to learn that Middleton had eaten whale, particularly as she is such a high-profile figure.

WDC whaling campaigner Vanessa Williams-Grey said: “Commercial whale hunting is banned, the UK government backs the ban and for good reason. Killing whales is cruel, there is no humane way to kill them and many are slaughtered using brutal harpoon grenades.

“Last season, 731 minke whales suffered an agonising death at the hand of Norwegian whalers. It might have been better for Pippa to take a whale watch trip in Norway. She may then have thought twice about condoning and indeed, promoting, this cruel and unnecessary trade."

Siri Martinsen, the head of Norwegian animal rights group NOAH, told The Local: "Being a well-known celebrity, she has a special responsibility to make sure she doesn’t support animal cruelty, so it’s a bit sad that she hasn’t taken the animal welfare consequences into consideration."

The Independent has contacted Middleton's publicist for comment.