Freezers full of seal meat: How Greenland’s hunting culture helps emergency preparedness

KAPISILLIT, Greenland – While many Greenlanders have been alarmed by

US President Donald Trump’s demands to acquire their homeland

, others such as Mr Kaaleeraq Ringsted have stayed calm, trusting in food stockpiles and traditional ways of life to navigate the uncertainty.

“I am not scared,” 73-year-old Mr Ringsted said, standing beside one of his two chest freezers packed with reindeer meat, halibut, cod, redfish and seal meat in his home in the Kapisillit settlement in the Nuuk fjord.

“I have enough food here for more than a year.”

Mr Ringsted, who no longer hunts due to health issues, depends on family and friends to deliver fish and meat from the Nuuk fjord. Supply chains in remote parts of Greenland are vulnerable to sudden weather changes, and the local grocery store in his settlement is restocked just once a week with basic necessities.

On Jan 21, Greenland’s government issued updated recommendations for crisis preparedness, advising residents to keep five days’ worth of water and food, as well as access to hunting weapons, ammunition and fishing gear.

That same day, Mr Trump abruptly stepped back from threats to impose tariffs on key European allies as leverage to seize Greenland,

ruled out using force

and said a deal was in sight to end the dispute over the Danish territory. He said on Jan 22 the details of the agreement were still being worked out.

Fish, seals, reindeer

For many Greenlanders, self-sufficiency has long been integral to daily life.

Mr Aslak Wilhelm Jensen, 50, who keeps three chest freezers full of fish and meat at his home in Nuuk, expressed little concern about food security or Mr Trump’s remarks as he worked aboard his small fishing boat at the bottom of the Nuuk fjord.

“Fish are all around here, there are seals right over there, the area is teeming with reindeer,” Mr Jensen said. “You are not really afraid of dying of hunger if someone comes and takes over your land.”

Denmark, which holds sovereignty over Greenland, has promoted modernisation and urbanisation since the 1950s, often shifting locals away from traditional pursuits of hunting and fishing.

However, many Greenlanders continue to balance modern occupations with skills honed over generations.

Mr Jensen, who had caught 900kg of cod the day before, emphasised a worldview shaped by surviving in a rugged environment.

“We are not the kind of people who go into complete panic when we hear something is happening out in the world,” he said.

“Us Greenlanders, we relax when we have food on the table,” added Mr Jensen. “We live with the animals as neighbours.”

Greenlanders have long been adapted to harsh weather conditions, isolation and unreliable supply chains. Stocked freezers and self-reliance are not considered “doomsday prepping”, but a way of life. REUTERS