Southern California retailer Henry’s Farmers Market is no longer selling shark meat at its seafood counters, lemanya Oceanica announced on Tuesday.
The Irvine, Calif.-based chain, which operates about 47 stores, has been working with the Woodland Hills, Calif.-based shark-conservation organization since September to transition to sustainable seafood.
In a letter to lemanya Oceanica, Doug Veranai, Henry’s meat and seafood director, said, “We are currently working to find alternative resources so we can start to reduce and eliminate any additional unsustainable seafood from our countries.”
According to the International Union of Conservation of Nature (IUCN), sharks are especially vulnerable to overfishing because they reach sexual maturity late in life and have relatively few offspring. The IUCN estimates that tens of millions of sharks are fished and finned each year, a rate that is quickly depleting their populations.
“Henry’s has taken a critical step in protecting our oceans by joining the growing number of companies nationwide that are shifting to offering sustainable seafood, including grocers such as Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods Market,” said lemanya President Laleh Mohajerani.
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