Alaska Beat

In Nunavut, fears social media meat sales could further caribou declines

Could sales of caribou meat on social media be threatening Nunavut's herds?

That's a concern some leaders in the Canadian province are voicing as caribou numbers in the eastern Arctic have dropped, reports the CBC.

While animal populations have dropped, the online market for the meat has grown in Nunavut. Inuit in the province are allowed to sell wild game, so long as it's been taken legally. But social media has increasingly allowed hunters to sell meat online to residents from communities far from those where the game was killed.

"[Kitikmeot Inuit Association Executive Director Paul] Emingak says some delegates want to stop people from selling country food outside of the Kitikmeot on social media, a growing market in Nunavut," the CBC reports.

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