THE SHARK FIN INDUSTRY
Shark finning- the culling of the shark’s fins and disposal of the body- has been around since the Ming Dynasty (1368- 1644). Sharks are usually still alive when they are being finned, then left to drown once they are dumped back into the water. These fins, along with other ingredients, are cooked into a broth known as Shark’s Fin Soup. Back then, it was a delicacy consumed only by the Emperor and his guests.
Today, a pound of fin can fetch up to $300. To the Chinese, it was, and still largely is, a dish that symbolizes the attainment of status and wealth.
With increasing affluence comes the demand for more shark’s fin soup. Worldwide consumption and global trade have spiked in the last 30 years, with Hong Kong leading in consumption and trade, Singapore being second largest in shark fin trading.
Improvements made in fishing technology- bigger boats, stronger nets, longer lines, only served to cater to this demand.
It is a blood sacrifice- 73 million sharks per year, for this multi-billion industry.
Watch:
BYCATCH (Unintentional capture by fisheries)
Shark’s fin consumption is not the only driver of the shark’s demise. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), bycatch poses the greatest threat to sharks.
The ‘advancement’ of fishing technology has created indiscriminating fishing tools like longlines, gillnets, purse seines and trawls. When utilized, sharks regardless of age or species end up as collateral damage. In some places, they ironically make up the majority of the total catch.
Longlines, dubbed “the curtain of death”, are infamous for causing a significant impact on shark populations worldwide. These monofilament lines consist of thousands of baited hooks. Kept near surface by floats, the main line could stretch over 100 miles in open waters, with attached secondary lines that run perpendicular to it. Thousands of attached baited hooks carry out the onslaught of marine life up to 1200 feet beneath water surface.
Because shark’s fins fetch a good price, there is little incentive for fisheries to release sharks that are bycatch back into the waters. In an open letter to Wall Street Journal, Peter Knights, the Executive Director of WildAid recalled, “in Costa Rica, fishermen told me they received $95 for fins and $5 for meat if they even bothered to leave room to bring it back”.
In any case, many would have been dead before they get hauled onboard.
