# What are seal skins (etc.) used for? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 25, 2006, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875 "2006-03-25T18:56:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![wolfstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d6d6ee/32.png) [@wolfstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfstu)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2006, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/1 "2006-03-25T18:56:39Z")
As many know, there’s an annual [hunt for harp seals](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4844008.stm) in eastern Canada. What are the fruits of the hunt used for? Fur coats? Seal steaks? Fertilizer? Is the skin of seals appropriate to coat-making? ---
**Author:** ![GingerOfTheNorth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/cdc98d/32.png) [@GingerOfTheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GingerOfTheNorth)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2006, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/2 "2006-03-25T20:05:33Z")
Lots of people eat the meat. The skins are used for making clothing and assorted other things, just like cow leather. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2006, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/3 "2006-03-25T20:42:39Z")
The fur of the baby harp seal is still white and very soft, so it is the most prized for fur coats. That’s why you see the shocking pictures of hunters clubbing the baby seals to death. The hunt would not seem so awful if it weren’t for consumers who lust for that beautiful white fur. The adult seal has much more meat and skin. Some animal rights person can fill you in on all that cruelty and horror stuff; I’m just here to talk about the impracticality of fur coats. You might as well stitch together a coat of 5 dollar bills, for all the warmth-per-buck you get in seal fur. Stick to down or hollofill, fer cryin’ out loud! ---
**Author:** ![wolfstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d6d6ee/32.png) [@wolfstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfstu)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2006, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/4 "2006-03-25T20:54:28Z")
> [@AskNott](#): > > The fur of the baby harp seal is still white and very soft, so it is the most prized for fur coats. That’s why you see the shocking pictures of hunters clubbing the baby seals to death. The hunt would not seem so awful if it weren’t for consumers who lust for that beautiful white fur. The adult seal has much more meat and skin. The pups lose that white fur as they mature. Hunting the pups while they still have that fluffy white coat was banned in 1987. That’s why I was asking whether the skin recovered in the hunt as actually good for fur coats. > [@GingerOfTheNorth](#): > > Lots of people eat the meat. The skins are used for making clothing and assorted other things, just like cow leather. Ah, but leather clothing, rather than fur. ---
**Author:** ![mks57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@mks57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mks57)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2006, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/5 "2006-03-25T21:53:41Z")
The USA has a ban on the import of seal products, not because they’re endangered, but because they’re “cute”. Canada might want to file a complaint under GATT or NAFTA. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2006, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/6 "2006-03-25T21:55:50Z")
> [@AskNott](#): > > The fur of the baby harp seal is still white and very soft, so it is the most prized for fur coats. White baby seals aren’t hunted. Haven’t been for years. It’s illegal to kill a seal before its coat darkens. You’re right about the pictures though. The truth of the matter is that the seal hunt is no more cruel or horrible than a chicken farm, or a slaughterhouse, or hunting for deer. The only difference is that baby seals are cute, which is why people get worked up over it and then go home and eat pork chops taken from a pig that was treated just as cruelly. ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2006, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/7 "2006-03-25T22:02:54Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > The only difference is that baby seals are cute, which is why people get worked up over it and then go home and eat pork chops taken from a pig that was treated just as cruelly. Knowing what I do about the hog industry, I think it’s virtually certain that the hogs are treated on average rather more cruelly than seals. ---
**Author:** ![GingerOfTheNorth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/cdc98d/32.png) [@GingerOfTheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GingerOfTheNorth)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2006, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/8 "2006-03-25T23:12:25Z")
> [@wolfstu](#): > > Ah, but leather clothing, rather than fur. No, I should have clarified. In my experience, the hair is left on. It’s very stiff, like cow hair rather than, say, polar bear, mink, or wolverine. ---
**Author:** ![GingerOfTheNorth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/cdc98d/32.png) [@GingerOfTheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GingerOfTheNorth)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2006, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/9 "2006-03-25T23:14:47Z")
[Picture of a sealskin parka.](http://www.foundmark.com/pers/gallery/parkas/eskimo/images/seal.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![wolfstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d6d6ee/32.png) [@wolfstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfstu)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2006, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/10 "2006-03-25T23:20:08Z")
> [@GingerOfTheNorth](#): > > [Picture of a sealskin parka.](http://www.foundmark.com/pers/gallery/parkas/eskimo/images/seal.jpg) In this parka, is the skin used with the fur side ‘out’ or ‘in’? I can see fluffy frills around the edges (collar, cuffs, etc)… are those extra stuff added on, or is that the inner lining of fur sticking out at the edges? ---
**Author:** ![GingerOfTheNorth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/cdc98d/32.png) [@GingerOfTheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GingerOfTheNorth)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2006, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/11 "2006-03-26T01:26:28Z")
That’s fur side out. If I’m not mistaken, that’s Ring seal fur. It’s very flat, not like most animal furs. ---
**Author:** ![Antigen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2006, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/12 "2006-03-26T01:42:46Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > You’re right about the pictures though. The truth of the matter is that the seal hunt is no more cruel or horrible than a chicken farm, or a slaughterhouse, or hunting for deer. The only difference is that baby seals are cute, which is why people get worked up over it and then go home and eat pork chops taken from a pig that was treated just as cruelly. What doesn’t help is that they’re hunted in the snow. Blood on the snow looks so much more horrific than on a dirt floor or something. It’s the drama factor. White baby seal, white snow, pool of red blood. Of course it’s going to make people cringe a little.\* - I know the white fuzzy babies aren’t hunted anymore, but those are the pics that the activists like to use. Wonder why? ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2006, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/13 "2006-03-26T01:44:29Z")
Sealskin coats (primarily for women) used to be considered very fashionable back in the '30s and '40s. I don’t know whether they’ve made a comeback since then. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2006, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/14 "2006-03-26T02:33:59Z")
So… where do they sell these seal skin leather products? I’ve never senn seal skin clothing or products for sale. Where’s the big market for them? ---
**Author:** ![wolfstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d6d6ee/32.png) [@wolfstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfstu)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2006, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/15 "2006-03-26T05:47:03Z")
> [@astro](#): > > So… where do they sell these seal skin leather products? I’ve never senn seal skin clothing or products for sale. Where’s the big market for them? Nor have I seen sealmeat, for that matter. I know it’s popular in the Canadian Arctic, though. ---
**Author:** ![detop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bcef8e/32.png) [@detop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/detop)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2006, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/16 "2006-03-26T14:28:19Z")
> [@wolfstu](#): > > Nor have I seen sealmeat, for that matter. I know it’s popular in the Canadian Arctic, though. I have. My father once brought back a can of the product (packed in the Magdalen islands). IIRC, they tried to market it a couple of years ago. It didn’t catch on, customers found it tasted too “fishy”. ---
**Author:** ![GingerOfTheNorth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/cdc98d/32.png) [@GingerOfTheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GingerOfTheNorth)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2006, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/17 "2006-03-26T15:29:48Z")
Seal meat is really fishy. It’s nasty, IMHO. However, it’s eaten in the Arctic, mostly by Inuit, and in Newfoundland, mostly by crazy people. Sealskin itself, I have no idea what it goes to. I don’t think I’ve ever seen it on anyone who didn’t live up North. Usually it was in clothing made and worn by Inuit, or sold to people who live up there. Sealskin mittens are very warm and waterproof, and are pretty common in the non-Aboriginal population in the NWT and Nunavut. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2006, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/18 "2006-03-26T17:25:08Z")
I Yahoogled “seal hunt,” and one of the hits was from USA Today. [http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2006-03-25-seal-hunt\_x.htm?csp=34](http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2006-03-25-seal-hunt_x.htm?csp=34) This should answer “who buys this stuff.” > [@USA Today](#): > > The hunt brought $14.5 million in revenue last year, after some 325,000 seals were slaughtered. Fishermen are able to sell their pelts, mostly for the fashion industry in Norway, Russia and China, as well as their blubber for oil. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2006, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/19 "2006-03-27T15:18:32Z")
Wow! If that USA Today quote is accurate, that’s only a little over $44.60 per seal. Doesn’t sound very economical to me. ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2006, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875/20 "2006-03-27T18:45:16Z")
> [@Doctor Jackson](#): > > Wow! If that USA Today quote is accurate, that’s only a little over $44.60 per seal. Doesn’t sound very economical to me. That would depend entirely on how much it costs to go out and clobber the seals. (And how much work it is to prepare for sale the bits they sell.) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-seal-skins-etc-used-for/349875.md?page=2)