In the UK on Channel 4 a documentary called ‘Gordon Ramsay: Shark Bait’ aired, with Ramsay himself visiting Taiwan and revealing serious acts of cruelty by fishermen being undertaken on Sharks, all because they are after the sharks fins, which are used to make Shark Fin soup.


Shark Fin soup is considered a delicacy in some Far Eastern cultures, and can retail in the UK at around £90 a dish. This means that fishing for Sharks fins is a potentially highly lucrative venture. When Ramsay observes a hidden video of the process of ‘finning’, he discovers that one Shark had its fins removed whilst it was still alive. To make an already unspeakable act of cruelty even worse, the shark body was then returned to the sea.

The harsh reality of the activities people across the world will willingly endure in order to make money is obvious to see.

So why isn’t the whole shark taken back to the ports?

The shark body is not worth much money in comparison to fins, which means many sharks are stripped of their fins and their bodies are not landed back at port either because there is no room on their boat, or that noone will buy them without their fins.

Some Sharks are becoming endangered species due to overfishing, and the problem is compounded if the particular shark species takes many years to reach sexual maturity.

Ramsay is effectively campaigning to discourage people from eating Shark Fin Soup, a dish he tasted but found it to be bland, and was surprised at its status as a delicacy given its lack of flavour. That’s good enough for us Gordon, consider us officially against the practice of eating Shark Fin soup, and we will certainly be looking into the other work carried out by the Shark Trust.

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