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Sharks Fin
By Peace | May 7, 2006
Shark fin as a food was reported in writings of the Ming Dynasty (1368 -1644). It has therefore been known in China for at least a few hundred years. Throughout the ages, the Chinese have considered shark fin one of the eight treasured foods from the sea. The fact that so little is obtained from such a large fish made fins noble and precious, fit for the tables of the emperors. Fins were indeed listed as articles of tribute when officers of coastal regions visited the emperors in the Imper
ial court. (Yang, Lin and Zhou)
Fins are traditionally served at dinner parties to express the host’s respect for his guests. To this day the practice still holds true in Chinese communities. They are most frequently consumed on auspicious occasions, such as weddings.
The international trade customarily classifies fins into white and black groups. Some traders say that this is a description of the colour of the fins, others that it is a classification by their yield and taste and a third version maintains that shark fins of the white group belong to sharks from shal
low waters while the black belong to sharks from deeper waters. The former have a set of three fins, two dorsal and a caudal fin, whereas the latter have a set of four, a pair of pectorals, a dorsal and a caudal fin.
All agreed however that fins of the white group give higher percentage of fin needles and a better flavour. These are more sought after and thus command higher prices. Fins from the black group are inferior in both percentage yield and flavour. The classification is used in the trade the world over but there are other differences in opinion. For instance, the fins of Tiger sharks are considered to be white by one Indian authority and black by another.
According to wildlife conservationists, much of the sharks’ fins in the trade are cut from living sharks; this process is called finning. Because shark meat is worth very little, the finless and often still-living sharks are thrown back into the sea to make room for more of the valuable fins
. When returned to the ocean, the finless sharks, unable to move, die from suffocation or are eaten by other sharks or animals. Also, many times fishermen who are looking for tuna find the sharks and fin them.
Finning is vigorously opposed by animal welfare groups; both on moral grounds and also because it is purportedly a major cause for the rapid decline of global shark populations, in some cases by 99% over the last 50 years, leading conservation ecologists and fishery experts to predict widespread shark extinction in 10 or 20 years. An estimated 100 million sharks are slaughtered each year for their fins, and the industry is valued at 1.2 billion US dollars; because of the lucrative profits, there are allegations of links to organized crime. They also raise questions on the medical harm from the consumption of high levels of toxic mercury reportedly found in shark fins.
In countries
such as Thailand and Singapore, public awareness advertisements on finning have reportedly reduced consumption by 25%. In Hong Kong, the oldest chain of restaurants specializing in shark fin soup has reportedly closed, citing lobbying by the animal rights groups as one of the main reasons.
New laws have been passed to prevent finning; though much of the international waters continue to be unregulated. The United States recently issued a ban on finning, applicable only to US-registered vessels, even in US territorial waters; and shark fins cannot be imported into the USA without entire carcasses. International fishing authorities are in the process of banning shark fishing (and finning) in the Alantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. However shark fishing and finning continues unabated in the Pacific and Indian Ocean.
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January 31st, 2008 at 7:44 am
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