Shark Finning Case Study

Culture and Shark Finning Management Shark finning, the act of removing a shark’s fins and dumping its carcass, is arguably the biggest threat to shark populations worldwide. Each year, anywhere from 73 to 100 million sharks are killed to make a traditional Chinese dish called shark fin soup (Jefferies, 2012). While most countries have laws in place to regulate shark finning, the immense demand for shark fins has created an international black market. China’s large population coupled with a recent economic boom has made the shark fin industry increasingly unsustainable (Clarke, Harley, Hoyle, & Rice, 2013). Sharks are particularly vulnerable to overfishing because they don’t reach sexual maturity until later in their lives, which means many sharks are being killed before they are able to contribute to the next generation. While shark conservation has come

Fabinyi and Liu (2014) claim that the best way to make a long-term change is to educate the Chinese people about the environmental dangers of shark finning. They found that most people were unconcerned about the sustainability of their seafood resources, but perhaps a consumer awareness campaign could spark some interest in shark conservation. Attention also needs to be drawn to the fact that shark fins do not have the health benefits the Chinese think they do (Jefferies, 2012). The United States Food and Drug Administration actually ranked shark as one of the foods that is most contaminated by methylmercury. Methylmercury is a toxin commonly found in seafood that is linked to male infertility and can negatively affect fetal development. Toxins enter the food chain at the bottom and accumulate as they make their way to the top, where sharks reside. This means that people who consume large amounts of shark and other potentially contaminated seafood are heightening their risk for some health