Projects
Building Shark Fin Awareness, Hong Kong
Sharks today are ruthlessly hunted. Yet this ancient predator plays a vital role in the maintenance and stability of marine ecosystems. As a result, some species are on the verge of extinction. Part of the problem is that a single pound of shark fin can sell for more than US$300.
Throughout much of Asia, shark fin soup is a symbol of wealth particularly favoured at celebration banquets.
Shark bodies traditionally don't have substantial value, so fishermen in search of higher profits discard the bodies and keep only the fins, wasting 95% of the animal.
The practice of shark finning is prohibited by national bans in the USA, the European Union, South Africa, Brazil and Costa Rica. Nevertheless, the number of sharks killed remains unregulated in most national waters and on the high seas.
Few stock assessments for sharks have been conducted and these have been heavily constrained by a lack of species-specific data. However, estimates based on shark fin trade data suggest that between 26 and 73 million sharks are traded annually worldwide. Until the mid 1990s, shark fin cuisine in China was nearly exclusively found in the southern provinces of Guangdong and Fujian, as well as in the major cities of Hong Kong, Beijing and Shanghai. This is changing as health in the Mainland increases. A complete ban may not stop illegal shark finning since the demand is very high.
In order to address this challenge, we believe in a strategy combining greater awareness of the need to reduce shark mortality with a regulated and controlled shark fishing environment.
ADMCF is supporting WWF's launch of an awareness program in Hong Kong about shark finning. The initial target will be the local food service industry.
Status
Awareness fact sheets targeted at both restaurants and the general public have been released in early 2008 and were distributed by WWF. As part of the campaign, WWF wrote to high-profile companies in Hong Kong asking them to consider a policy removing shark fin soup from corporate banquet menus and receives significatnt response.
Projects
- The Cardamom Mountains Trust Fund, Cambodia
- Wildlife at Risk, Vietnam
- Air Pollution, Hong Kong
- Air Pollution Mapping, China
- Centre for Legal Assistance to Pollution Victims, China
- Building Cambodia's New Generation of Ecologists, Cambodia
- Green Choice Initiative, China
- Building Shark Fin Awareness, Hong Kong