Do you still eat sharks fin although the number of sharks are decreasing?

Question

Or it doesn't really matter? just want to see your opinion..

I mean i am focusing more on the cutting the fin and then throwing the sharks back into the sea. not eating shark as a whole. you feel it is ok that they just get the fin only than eating the whole shark?

Answer 1

Ive never eaten shark's fin and never will. I think it's selfish to eat a species into extinction.

Answer 2

I just got this from other questions and answers

"Did you know that more people die from eating sharks than being attacked by sharks?
Shark fins contain 42 times more mercury than a human is allowed. Bees, lightning and buckets also kill more humans than sharks.

Additional Details

1 day ago
Coconuts also kill more people than sharks."

- i agree with this, shark attacks are rare.


"The problem with these statistics is that there are no studies that back them up. They are just statements without any true evidence. Even the mercury amount is off since it depends on the species of shark.

BTW I happen to agree that the shark fin thing is actually quite ridiculous. After all sharks osmoregulate by storing urine in their tissues. So if you are eating shark you are eating in affect urine. Use this as an argument if you like, it is common knowledge among icthyologists.

If you want to convince people of something stick with the unabridged truth and let them make up their own minds"

- ooo sounds very professional, never heard of it, i must be aware and tell my friends.

Answer 3

Not all species of shark are threatened. Here in Australia you can buy shark meat in every fish shop in the country. It is sold as Flake.

As to cutting the fins off a shark and throwing it back, that certainly goes on a lot. A decent shark fin can fetch up to two thousand dollars, a mighty incentive to ruthless operators.

The people that do this are usually Asians who hunt the sharks in small fast boats. You could not call them fishermen as they carry automatic weapons and are not adverse to a bit of piracy when the opportunity presents itself.

Every now and then some are caught in Australian waters, their boats are confiscated and the operators go to gaol, but we have a big coastline which is hard to police and so it just goes on and on, sorry to say.

Answer 4

Have you ever tried shark's fin soup??? Authentic, good quality ones??? It is a "must have" item on the menu in all decent Chinese restaurants.

Shark's fin soup is also a "must have" dish to serve in Chinese banquets (any kind of occasions from birthday to wedding), honestly, if the sharks are really decreasing, it would just make the sharks fins price up higher but won't make the Chinese stop eating it.

I'm telling you the fact.

I'm not a big fan of shark's fin but I do know how to prepare it and I only would eat the high quality and well prepared dishes and small portion, my stomach can't take much of it!

Answer 5

I would rather eat a shark, than have the shark eat me. No, I have never eaten shark. I dont understand why they just serve the fins and not the rest of it. Sharks are an apex predator, I think they will be just fine.

Answer 6

Well, I have never eaten real shark fin. They are going extinct! I would not be one of the many supporting a species into extinction. However, if you are thinking about shark-fin dumplings at a Chinese restaurant (especially dim-sum), there is no shark meat in there. It is a mixture, of pork, fish, and/or chicken. Then, you dip them in soy sauce.

Answer 7

Number of whales are also decreasing but pro-whaling nations like Japan and Norway continue their national habit of killing whales for food.

Malaysia and Indonesia have for years kill the protected Giant Leatherback turtles for food and ornament-making.

There are no statistics to back your claim that sharks are decreasing because they are hunted for their fins. But this does not mean that killing sharks for food should be condone. On the contrary, I think it is important for a people to place a whole lot less emphasis on their traditional eating habit; and be very concerned about killing whales, turtles, etc for food or any other reason.

Conservation does matter. But NOT to the people who continue to enjoy eating whale meat and sharks fin soup.

Answer 8

No.
I love it but I won't have it.

I'm rather fanatical about marine life & ocean ecology.

I've been a leisure diver for more than 10yrs and it's sad to see dive sites destroyed and marine life dwindle over the years.

To those who aren't aware of the effects & methods of finning please read my links, this is a topic very close to my heart:

http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/sharks/innews/eusharkfins.html
http://archives.cnn.com/2002/TECH/science/08/20/fin.market.threat/
http://www.sharkfriends.com/sharkfinning.html
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/10/061012-shark-fin.html

Hans V, this is one of the easiest thing to stop.
No need to police the people who are finning...
If everyone stops buying it, there will be no market for it.
In asia, more and more people are being educated about it's effects, these days only some of the older people will still insist on it at banquets as a tradition.
However, there is hardly any nutritional value, it is not part of any necessary diet, it is tastless.
IF we educate everyone we know, it will stop.
Every single person I know has stopped buying this product, just for being aware of the effect this has on our marine eco-system bcos of the methods used.

Answer 9

I wouldn't eat sharks fin even if i got paid to.

Answer 10

If people are still going to eat the shark meat, I think they should eat the shark fin as well. If you are going to kill the animal at least use all that you can.

Answer 11

The best answer is, as always, moderation. Shark's fin is essential for Chinese and Japanese cuisine. All right, I'm all for cutting back and letting the oceans restore themselves, but at the same time I would not expect cultures to suddenly "obey" middle class America's guilt trips. I eat it, will again, and will enjoy it. I might not have it as often, but stopping is not necessary.
I've never heard of fishermen wasting a catch, either. If a fishing boat caught a shark, they would NOT throw the fish back minus its fin. That is propaganda.