WWF asks corporations to drop delicacy from the menu
Corporations are being urged to drop shark fin from their banquet menus, amid an expected rise in demand for the traditional dish amid the booming economy.
The call was made by the local arm of environmentalist group WWF, which recently polled a number of companies and organisations to see if they had a policy on banning shark fin.
At least 26 groups, including banking and financial firms, tertiary education institutions and non-governmental organisations, replied that they would neither buy shark fins nor treat clients to the delicacy, though WWF did not say how many groups did not respond to their inquiries.
The names of these companies would be put on the group's website for public reference, but the WWF said it was not in a position to monitor whether they kept their word.
Clarus Chu Ping-shing, WWF's senior marine conservation officer, said it was an appropriate time to call on businesses to act now, especially when the demand for the traditional food would rise on the back of the strong economy.
Official figures showed that the city already imported 3,636 tonnes of dried shark fins in the first 10 months of this year, just 500 tonnes less than the whole of last year. An earlier report suggested that the city accounted for 50 to 80 per cent of the global trade in shark fins.
