I agree with the fact that the quota should be increased, as long as [Editor's note: inaudible] as far as managing the hunt is concerned. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans has a management plan, but we always have to be extremely careful because IFAW might file a complaint and the Humane Society always has us in its sights. We do not really want to increase the quota—because we are under pressure—to 360,000 or 375,000 seals, as Paul was saying. We know there is a market for these products, because some pelts were sold for $105 a piece in Newfoundland.
Last week, I heard a chemist make a presentation about collagen, which is used to treat severe burn victims and other conditions. This caught my attention, because it could drive up the price of seal's pelts skin tenfold. Collagen sells for between $30,000 and $40,000 per kilo. The product exists, but to research and to take advantage of this market, we will need government help.
We want to use every part of the seal. People criticize us because we leave behind the meat. We tried to create small businesses to sell the meat, but because these businesses received so little support from the provincial government, they had to close their operations.
I think that Canadians should get together and work together to find ways of using every part of the seal. No part should be left behind, not even the claws, which could perhaps be used to make small necklaces. It is true that there is a lot of waste.