On July 1, Hawaii’s government became the first to ban the possession, distribution and sale of shark fins. IMHO, this should have been done ages ago and really, the Canadian government needs to stop lagging behind and take moves to protect sharks.
It’s not the eating of shark that is the problem. I’m happily a carnivore and will most likely remain one. But I do not eat meat that is unsustainable and shark hunting is not sustainable.
Sharks are a predator species – like most predator species, they are not very numerous. This makes logical sense because predators must be fewer than their prey or else they will starve. Hunting places an additional pressure on a species that are not fecund to start with.
Secondly, many fisheries which hunt sharks only take the fins. Why? Thanks to “delicacies” like shark fin soup, the fins are worth more than the meat. Much, much more. So fishers slice the fins from live shark and throw the body back, as the meat is not worth its weight on the boat. Deprived of its fins, the shark sinks to the bottom where it dies a slow and painful death.
All for a bit of soup and hokey “traditional” remedies. 😦
Say no to shark fin soup.
Disclaimer: This is a slight reworking and reposting of something I wrote a while ago.
AlbinoMouse 
[…] greater. But now, we cannot even make the claim that they are hunted for food. It is the demand for shark fins that fuels a majority of the shark hunt. The fins are so valuable and command so much money in […]
So glad you are bringing this to attention… and kudos to The Vancouver Sun for tackling the issue recently
[…] where animal protection legislation is lax or non-existent. If passed, California would join Hawaii in the efforts to prevent shark fins from making it into the soup bowl. The New York Times […]