Archive for April, 2009

Shark fin soup is no longer the flavour of the moment among young Asian restaurant-goers.

Singaporean groom Han Songguang even took his campaign to stop consumption of one of Asia’s top delicacies to a new level when he placed postcards of a dead shark on each guest’s seat at his own wedding banquet.

Instead of shark’s fin soup, a must at many ethnic Chinese wedding banquets, Han offered his guests lobster soup.

“If we can do our part to save ‘X’ number of sharks … why not?” said Han, a geography teacher, who married a diving enthusiast in December.

Wildlife conservationists, who have long railed against the popularity of shark fin soup, are finally seeing signs that consumption is dropping, as young Asians become aware of the environmental impact of this much prized dish.

Added to that is the global financial crisis, which is causing Asians to tighten their belts and either cut down on visits to restaurants or order more frugally from menus.

A symbol of wealth and status in Chinese culture, shark fin soup has long been an essential part of banquet celebrations for weddings and to welcome in the Lunar New Year.

Until recently, only the rich could afford the soup. But demand has soared in recent years, hand-in-hand with rising affluence in East Asia.

The quantity of shark fins demanded, around 800,000 metric tonnes a year, has caused a sharp decline in shark numbers. About 20 percent of all shark species are now endangered.

Wildlife conservationists also decry the killing of sharks through ‘finning’, whereby the fins are cut off and the live shark is tossed back into the sea. Unable to swim properly, the shark suffocates or is killed by predators.

“Today we have incredible access to information. It has become much harder to say ‘I didn’t know’,” said Glenn Sant, marine program leader of the British wildlife group Traffic.

He urged young Asians to take a stand and say: “‘It shouldn’t be an insult not to put shark fin on our wedding menu.’”

Despite efforts to ban “finning,” environmentalists say it is still carried out across the region as fishermen want the valuable fin but don’t want to store the rest of the shark as its flesh fetches low prices at fish markets.

Tastes have changed along with awareness for young Asians.

Shang-kuan Liang-chi, a National Taiwan University student who has tried the crunchy jelly-like dish twice at formal events, prefers other food and avoids a shark fin restaurant near campus. “University students never go in there,” he said.

Authorities in south China recently rescued a nurse shark from a tank after learning that it was to be slaughtered and its fins turned into soup for a 70-person banquet.

Shark fin sellers say their sales have also been tested by the economy. With Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong in recession, the restaurant business is flagging. Older consumers would buy more in better times, they say.

Shark fin out of vogue – food-wine – life-style | Stuff.co.nz.