Five whaling ships set sail from Kushiro in Japan for the country's first commercial hunt since 1986.

The ships are allowed to catch up to 227 whales in Japanese waters, after it pulled out of an international whaling moratorium.

Shigeto Hase, the Director General of the Japanese Fisheries Agency, said many people had been hoping for this moment but conservationist groups like Greenpeace and Sea Shepherd remain critical of Japan's resumption of whaling.

Read more: Japan resumes commercial whaling after 30 years.