More than 50 metric tons (MT) of shark fins have been exported from the United Kingdom in the past two and half years despite the country’s government being strongly opposed to the practice of shark finning, claims Greenpeace UK.
An investigation by the campaign group’s Unearthed project said that data from HM Revenue and Customs points to shark fin exports from the United Kingdom totaling hundreds of thousands of pounds since the start of 2017, with the vast majority destined for Spain.
Its analysis found that 12 MT of shark fins worth GBP 92,000 (USD 112,748, EUR 101,310) were exported to Spain in the first five months of this year alone. In 2018, the United Kingdom exported 29.7 MT of fresh shark fins, worth GBP 216,000 (USD 264,715, EUR 237,860), mainly to Spain. In the previous year, the country exported a little over 10 MT.
Unearthed said that according to the FAO, Spain is one of the world’s biggest shark fin exporters, supplying Asian countries where shark fin soup is considered a delicacy.
The U.K. government successfully pushed the E.U. to ban shark finning in 2003. This highly controversial practice sees fishermen cut the fins from sharks at sea, before dumping their bodies back in the water to die. Since 2013, E.U. rules have stated that sharks can only have their fins removed once they have been landed.
Unearthed acknowledged that it is not illegal to buy or sell certain types of shark fin in the United Kingdom, as long as traders adhere to the regulations.
Image courtesy of Greenpeace UK
