EU seal ban challenged by Canada

European foreign ministers agreed on the ban following years of appeals from animal rights campaigners.

Products from traditional hunts by indigenous peoples in Canada and Greenland will be exempt from the ban.

Canada says the decision is not based on science and it will challenge it at the World Trade Organization (WTO).

The EU ministers' decision follows a vote by the European Parliament in May to ban the sale of all seal products across the bloc's 27 nations.

Ministers said on Monday that the ban was being put in place "in response to concerns about the animal welfare aspects of seal hunting practices".