Shark fins and meat from hammerhead sharks pose a health risk to consumers — especially women of childbearing age — and should not be sold because of their dangerously high levels of toxic mercury, according to a new study.
Are shark fins safe to eat?
On average their bodies will contain mercury accumulated over 20 to 30 years,” Chen said. Last month a woman in Taiwan who ate shark fin at least once a week was diagnosed with mercury poisoning, she said. “Mercury will not dissolve in cooking,” Chen warned. “It is harmful to the brain and nervous system.
Why you should not eat shark fin?
Recent evidence tells us that shark fins contain high concentration of mercury and methylmercury, which toxins may cause potential health impact including the risk of neurological disorders, infertility, and coronary heart disease.
Are shark fins good for you?
Shark fin soup has been associated with a variety of benefits from increased virility to longer life. However, the fin is purely cartilage, the same compound in human, cow and other vertebrates. Cartilage has no nutritional value. Any benefit would come from the broth and other ingredients added.
Why do people eat shark fins?
Shark fins are tempting targets for fishermen because they have high monetary and cultural value . They are used in a popular dish called shark fin soup, which is a symbol of status in Chinese culture.
Why do Chinese people eat shark fin?
The cartilage in the fins is usually shredded and used primarily to provide texture and thickening to shark fin soup, a traditional Chinese soup or broth dating back to the Song Dynasty (960-1279). The dish is considered a luxury item embodying notions of hospitality, status and good fortune.
Is all shark high in mercury?
Results. The average mercury concentration of shark meat was 2.29 ± 1.77 µg/g, ranging between 0.06–8.93 µg/g with a geometric mean of 1.44 µg/g, which is higher than those reported in many countries. The mercury concentration in 77 of 105 shark meat samples exceeded 1 µg/g.
Why is shark fin soup cruel?
Shark finning facts:
Sharks thrown back into the oceans after being finned die in agony from suffocation, blood loss or predation. Sharks are apex predators and play a vital role in maintaining marine ecosystems. Without them, marine animals and habitats would suffer. Shark finning is unsustainable.
How much are shark fins worth?
In 2022, the approximate price range for US Shark Fins is between US$ 2.61 and US$ 6.31 per kilogram or between US$ 1.18 and US$ 2.86 per pound(lb). The price in Euro is EUR 2.61 per kg. The average price for a tonne is US$ 2608.81 in New York and Washington.
What is a shark fin made of?
cartilage
However, the fin is purely cartilage, the same compound in human, cow and other vertebrates. Cartilage has no nutritional value. Any benefit would come from the broth and other ingredients added. A 2012 study of fins from seven species of shark found a neurotoxin known as BMAA in 80 percent of 29 samples.
Do Japanese eat shark fin soup?
A well-known delicacy in Chinese cuisine, dried shark fin is often served in the form of a soup or stew. While there are many concerns around the sustainability of shark fin, Japan has a long history of utilizing shark in cuisine and has developed refined methods for processing sharks humanely and without waste.
Is shark meat edible?
Shark meat is a seafood consisting of the flesh of sharks. Several sharks are fished for human consumption, such as porbeagles, shortfin mako shark, requiem shark, and thresher shark, among others. Shark meat is popular in Asia, where it is often consumed dried, smoked, or salted.
What does shark taste like?
Think alligator and chicken. Depending on who is doing the dining, shark meat tastes like chicken — or roadkill. It’s meaty and mild — but has to be soaked well before it’s eaten because sharks urinate through their skin.
Can Muslims eat shark fin?
Examples are catfish, shark, swordfish, eel, monk-fish, cusk, and blow-fish. This category is acceptable to the majority of Muslim consumers, but not all denominations accept them as Halal. They might consider them Makrooh (disliked or detested).
Is shark fin soup illegal?
Bill Clinton signed the Shark Finning Prohibition Act of 2000 (SFPA), which banned finning on any fishing vessel within United States territorial waters and on all U.S.-flagged fishing vessels in international waters.
Is shark fin soup illegal in UK?
The UK will ban the import and export of detached shark fins and products containing them.
What countries still eat shark fin soup?
Shark fin soup is a traditional soup or stewed dish served in parts of China, Taiwan, and Southeast Asia. The shark fins provide texture, while the taste comes from the other soup ingredients. It is commonly served at special occasions such as weddings and banquets, or as a luxury item.
Is shark fin soup expensive?
Fins can bring in hundreds of dollars on the market, with the average being about $450 per pound. A bowl of soup can cost $100. Shark fin soup has been considered a symbol of wealth and a delicacy in China since the Ming Dynasty.
How many sharks are killed for shark fin soup?
Approximately 73 to 100 million sharks are killed annually worldwide just for their fins. Some shark populations are already functionally extinct, having declined by as much as 99%. The outcome of further inaction will soon create a vast jellyfish soup, formally known as the ocean.
Why is shark meat poisonous?
Shark meat is incredibly dangerous because sharks are apex predators who accumulate high levels of toxic chemicals and heavy metals from both skin absorption and from consuming their prey. These dangerous chemicals and metals add up over time and quickly reach toxic levels. This process is known as bioaccumulation.
Which fish has most mercury?
Overall, larger and longer-lived fish tend to contain the most mercury ( 4 ). These include shark, swordfish, fresh tuna, marlin, king mackerel, tilefish from the Gulf of Mexico, and northern pike ( 5 ). Larger fish tend to eat many smaller fish, which contain small amounts of mercury.