text: Her brother-in-law has led a personal crusade against poaching and protecting vulnerable wildlife. So Pippa Middleton’s decision to enjoy a plate of whale meat on holiday may have been rather difficult for Prince William to swallow. The 31-year-old, who styles herself as a food and lifestyle writer, has told of eating Minke whale – even though it is largely banned worldwide. She boasted of tucking into the delicacy in Norway, to the horror of environmental campaigners who say she is helping promote an ‘unimaginably cruel’ trade. Scroll down for video . Pippa Middleton has been slammed for ‘promoting the cruel and unnecessary whaling industry’. She's pictured here at the 2014 GQ Men Of The Year awards in London . In a gushing newspaper feature, the Duchess of Cambridge’s younger sister described how the smoked meat was served in a ‘wonderfully convivial atmosphere’ at the Juvet Landscape Hotel in north-west Norway. Tucking into a starter prepared carpaccio-style – raw and very thinly sliced – she wrote: ‘We dined on smoked whale carpaccio (which tastes similar to smoked salmon but looks more like venison carpaccio).’ Ms Middleton said that she ate whale carpaccio in a 'convivial atmosphere on a large communal table' Earlier she had enjoyed a steam bath and rubbed ice on her body in a ‘snow spa’ at the upmarket hotel, where she spent the night in a £170-a-night ‘designer pod’. The hunting and importation of whale meat is banned in Britain, as it is in most parts of the world, by both the International Whaling Commission and by the international wildlife convention CITES. But Norway – as well as Japan and Iceland – has exploited legal loopholes that allow it to opt out of regulations. Last year it killed around 730 Minke whales, the highest number since it broke the moratorium on commercial whaling in 1993. Campaigners have long called for a crackdown, arguing the hunting process is ‘unimaginably cruel and inhumane’. The socialite, writing in the Daily Telegraph, said that she ate whale at the £123-a-night Juvet Landscape Hotel (pictured) Ms Middleton said that the dinner was cooked by Knut, the hotel’s owner. The Duchess of Cambridge's sister said that the establishment was an 'architectural gem' Pippa Middleton would be breaking British law if she had tucked into the whale meat in the UK. Britain has signed up to the International Whaling Commission, which makes it illegal to import or eat whale meat in this country. Whaling is also prohibited under EU law, but Norway is not a member of the EU. Last season, 731 minke whales were killed in Norway off the country’s northern coasts. The whaling season runs from April to August, when they are hunted from boats using grenade-propelled harpoons, which are shot from cannons into the whale’s chest. In the 1960s and 70s whale meat was commonly served in Norwegian school canteens and as part of military rations. It then fell out of favour, but has recently been adopted as a gourmet food trend. Fish market manager Marius Tvethaug said: ‘Smoked whale is one of the oldest ways to keep food for a long time. And we’ve been catching whale since the Stone Age. I would say it’s kind of back to our roots.’ Even with modern harpoons powered by explosives, the mammals often died a ‘slow and painful’ death. Critics said Miss Middleton’s decision to eat whale meat was at odds with the stance taken by Prince William – even though he too has been attacked for continuing to hunt wild game. She has also been photographed hunting in the past. Vanessa Williams-Grey, of Whale and Dolphin Conservation, said: ‘It might have been better for Pippa to take a whale watch trip in Norway. She might then have thought twice about condoning and indeed, promoting, this cruel and unnecessary trade.’ Philip Mansbridge, UK director of the International Fund for Animal Welfare, said she was ‘unwittingly setting a bad example’ that may encourage other tourists. A spokesman for Miss Middleton, who travelled on the junket for the Daily Telegraph, refused to comment last night. But Knut Slinning, owner of Juvet Landscape Hotel, said he had no plans to stop serving whale meat because it has been eaten for ‘many hundreds of years’. However, Siri Martinsen, of Norway’s animals rights group NOAH, said Miss Middleton has a ‘special responsibility’ not to support animal cruelty. Last year 731 minke whales suffered an agonising death at the hand of Norwegian whalers, according to WDC. Pictured is a minke whale on the deck of a Japanese vessel . Three Greenpeace inflatables  interrupt whaling on board the Norwegian whaling vessel Kato in the Southern whaling grounds in the North Sea . Ms Middleton, a fitness fanatic, is currently preparing to take part in a 54-mile charity bike ride from London to Brighton in June, to raise money for the British Heart Foundation .
target: Middleton wrote about eating whale for a national newspaper travel story .
  She described eating it at the £123-a-night Juvet Landscape Hotel .
  Whale And Dolphin Conservation group said the news was 'disappointing'
  The WDC said Ms Middleton should have gone whale watching  instead .