Shark fins ‘discovered’ in Hong Kong cargo of freight companies that have banned product
Sea Shepherd Global claims it found falsely declared goods while carriers involved reiterate their policies and pledge to close loopholes
Large volumes of shark fins are still entering the city by air and sea through carriers that have pledged to ban the product, an investigation by a conservation group has found.
The three-month probe from November to January by non-profit group Sea Shepherd Global found that shipments avoided detection by “misdeclaring” and “mislabelling” shark fins under generic categories such as “seafood” or “dried marine products”.
“The months leading up to the [Lunar New Year] are the busiest for shark fin traders,” claimed Gary Stokes, Southeast Asia director for Sea Shepherd Global.
The organisation discovered two containers of shark fins from Oman in the Middle East carried by Maersk, the world’s largest shipping line. The Danish company implemented a worldwide ban on shark fin carriage in 2010.
Shark fins were also found in the cargo of Virgin Australia and Cathay Pacific aircraft but details could not be disclosed due to legal issues. It was uncertain if the fins were all from endangered species, which if confirmed, would be in breach of the law.
In response, Maersk said it had a policy not to accept shark products due to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. “We regard any breach of our policy as very serious.”