Unfinished Business

With An Estimated 100 Million Sharks Slaughtered Every Year, We Take A Look At How Countries’ Practices And Policies Are Impacting The Shark Fin Trade In Asia

- Hastings Forman

Shark fin – and shark meat – is widely consumed in Asia. Shark fin soup is a notable Chinese and Vietnamese delicacy: Such is the prestige associated with the cuisine that it is traditionally served at wedding banquets. At a restaurant, a single bowl can set you back USD100.

But over the course of the last two decades – with the help of big names such as Jackie Chan and Yao Ming, as well as hotel groups, restaurants and airlines – people all over the continent, particularly the youth, are turning their backs on shark fin in the name environmental consciousness. China, a large consumer, has notably banned the dish at state functions.

A 2016 poll by WWF Singapore found that over three-quarters of Singaporeans want government policy to counter the consumption of shark fin. Similarly, a 2014 report by WildAid, an organisation that works to reduce demands for wildlife products, surveyed Chinese consumers online and found that 85 percent of participants had given up shark fin within the previous three years.

This signals a gradual cultural shift away from the traditional popularity and acceptability of consuming shark fin soup – and the statistics speak volumes. A 2013 report published in Marine Policy estimated that 100 million sharks are killed every year, although the figure could be anywhere between 63 million and 273 million. The primary cause behind these shocking numbers? Overfishing for fins and meat.

WHAT IS BEING DONE?

“Pretty much every country in the world has banned shark finning, defined as the act of catching the animal, hacking off the fins, and discarding the body (many times while it is still alive) at sea,” says Randall Arauz, policy advisor of the shark conservation group, Fins Attached.