“There is simply no issue more important. Conservation is the preservation of human life on earth, and that, above all else, is worth fighting for.”
― Rob Stewart

SHARK FIN SOUP

Know an establishment selling shark fin soup? Below is a letter in English and Chinese. Download it, print it and sign it before dropping it off to the manager. The Chinese culture thrives on pride and humility, you’d be amazed how far you can get with kindness and a subtle informative approach. This letter is our way of approaching shark fin soup.

WATCH THE FILMS

The stories of sharks far and wide and the threats they face, from the shark hunters to the ones being hunted by changing water temperatures, becoming aware is the first step.

EAT NO SHARK

The most dangerous thing about shark, is often its consumption. From the meat to the fins, from arsenic to methyl mercury, naturally occurring toxins thrive in these apex predators. The sharks take no notice, but to us its lethal, and far more common thank you think.

the images on this page were taken by Caragh Fraser, to view her website and purchase prints, click below.

PRODUCTS TO AVOID

The dish shark fin soup is not limited to China, you can find it on the menu in Australia, USA, Canada and many more. For obvious reasons this dish should be avoided all together, and the restaurants that serve it should be avoided also. Many shark fins are imported into Australia, they could be protected species illegally killed, they could also be from countries where shark finning is not illegal, or finned illegally. Many restaurants will try and tell you that the shark fins are not real- but it is dishonourable and illegal to state it is shark fin in the menu if it is actually a fake form of shark fin.

If you do go to a restaurant and see it on the menu, get up and walk out! Fell free to make a scene, politely inform the manager why you wont be eating at the restaurant, you would be amazed how much of an impact this can have. In addition to this, a new study has also found that most processed shark fins have mercury and methyl-mercury levels five to 10 times higher than the legal maximum amount. Making the most dangerous things about sharks, their consumption.

 MAY ALSO BE CALLED

• AE-941

• Cartilage de Requin

• Cartilage de Requin du Pacifique

• Cartilago de Tiburon

• Collagène Marin

• Extrait de Cartilage de Requin

• Liquide de Cartilage Marin

• Marine Collagen

• Marine Liquid Cartilage

• MSI-1256F

• Neovastat

• Poudre de Cartilage de Requin

• Shark Cartilage Powder

• Shark Cartilage Extract

• Sphyrna lewini

• Squalus acanthias

Shark cartilage is mainly used for joint pain (more on this below) and at times, treating cancer. In addition to putting pressure on this finite species for reasons with no medical validity, it can be dangerous for humans. The dangers of cartilage include causing a bad taste in the mouth, nausea, vomiting, stomach upset, constipation, low blood pressure, dizziness, high blood sugar, high calcium levels, and fatigue. (1995 - 2013 Therapeutic Research Faculty, publishers of Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database). Scientists at the University of Miami analysed cartilage samples collected from seven species of sharks off the coast of Florida. The specimens all contained high levels of a compound called beta-methylamino-L-alanine, or BMAA, which has been linked to the development of neurodegenerative disease.

Does it stop cancer? A book called “sharks don’t get cancer” caused the boom of this supplement, now its prescribed to thousands of Americans a year. Purely because sharks have a cartilage bone structure, it was assumed they did not get cancer. The truth is, sharks have an ECM, or ‘extracellular matrix’, the extracellular matrix (ECM) is the extracellular part of animal tissue that usually provides structural support to the animal cells in addition to performing various other important functions. Cartilage's unique and imposing structure makes it nearly immune to cancer growth. It is difficult for cells to penetrate through the network of ECM, thus thwarting cancer growth.

It is believed the consumption of cartilage will give the same properties to humans, however sharks do get cancer, in addition to this,  In May 2005, The United States National Centre for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) reported on a trial using a brand of shark cartilage called BeneFin. 88 patients with advanced breast or bowel cancer had either standard care or standard care plus Benefin. The study showed that shark cartilage did not improve survival or quality of life. One of many studies conducted to discredit the validity of shark cartilage as a treatment. The FDA also pushed several injunctions against a number of cartilage manufacturers were made to pay restitution to customers because they had falsely claimed their product could help fight cancer in 2002. 

A year-long investigation I did in collaboration with Project Earth in Miami unearthed a trove of troubling evidence about the shark cartilage industry. We conducted tests on shark pills taken from your everyday USA stores, CVS, wallgreens etc. DNA testing has revealed that various brands of shark cartilage pills contained cartilage from an endangered species of shark, while other brands didn’t have shark cartilage at all, but rather DNA from other marine animals. One of the most shocking things we found, was DNA traces of manta ray.

Shark cartilage for their joints, shark bones for their chew toys and even shark fins and skin for treats. The pet industry is the latest to jump on board the exploitation of wild sharks. Toxins and chemicals such as Arsenic, Microplastics, Methylmercury, Urea and Lead bioaccumulate and biomagnify in apex predators making shark meat poisonous to consume. Shark is NOT a part of a dogs natural diet and there is no excuse to feed such a dangerous product to our pets.

Humans are decimating shark populations at an alarming rate due to the demand for fin soup, cartilage products, overfishing, organised hunts, by-catch, shark nets, culls and poor management of fisheries while also destroying their ocean habitat and disrupting the ecosystem therefore, with no knowledge of the species of sharks your products come from, it is likely you are contributing to the depletion of endangered species.  

Here is the biggest issue, would these sharks still have been killed if they weren’t used fir pet treats? Probably. Buying these products however, increases the economic incentive to keep catching sharks and to delay or avoid measures to decrease by-catch. Without taking their status into consideration, the use of shark products in this day and age can be compared to other endangered animal trades such as rhino and ivory.

“100% North Queensland Black Tip Reef Sharks – Sustainably sourced”

So we know the origin of a lot of this product in Australia, is legal and a product of deemed “sustainable” shark fisheries, something a lot of brands proudly advertise. The reality of shark fisheries in Australia, is a long history of collapse and struggle to meet management strategies put in place to protect species. Here is an example, the largest fishery targeting sharks off north QLD is the ECIFF (east coast inshore fin fish fishery). Out of the 6 species of shark that dominated the catch in the ECIFF: 3 are listed as ‘near threatened, one is listed as ‘endangered.’ More than 60 species make up both the by catch and target catch, out of the identified species… 7 are classed “data deficient”, 13 “Vulnerable”, 18 “Near threatened”, 8 “critically endangered” and 3 “endangered” (from the IUCN red list of endangered species). In 2009 alone- This fishery took 18 tonnes of tiger shark, 19 tonnes of scalloped hammerhead, 27 tonnes of blacktip reef shark and 24 tonnes, of what they called ‘unspecified’ shark. Recently it was exposed that this fishery had led to the deaths of thousands of threatened species including sawfish, dugongs, dolphins and sea turtles. This fishery has always operated under the flag of “sustainable”.

Gummy shark caught in southern Australian waters is considered a sustainable choice by the federal government. The biology of the gummy shark is different from familiar apex predators like the great white, tiger and hammerhead sharks. It is relatively fast growing, has a high reproductive rate. However, the issue with this fishery is not the target catch, but the by-catch. The large levels of non target species that are caught in gill-nets.

The sale of shark products to our pets has been pushed onto the unsuspecting public by a trade of shark fins in a country where shark finning is illegal and whole body of the shark must be landed. It is a way to utilise the rest of an essentially worthless animals after the fins are traded to foreign countries. It’s an unacceptable display of human dominion over important marine creatures for domestic use as well as being unhealthy for your dog. The use of shark as chew toys and treats is something we cannot support. Alternatives to shark cartilage for dogs as joint relief include flaxseed, CBD oils and Avocado soybean unsaponifiables (ASUs).

Despite having many other healthier and cheaper vegetable based sources- Squalene is typically derived from the liver of deep-sea sharks, since these sharks have especially large reserves of squalene. However it is estimated that it takes 3,000 sharks to make just 1 ton of Squalene. The excessive targeting of these sharks has assisted in driving world shark populations below ten percent of what they were in 1950. We commonly see this product for sale as ingestible capsules but what we don’t know is that it hides in our every day cosmetics as well. Moreover, the traceability of these kinds of products is difficult since the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Codex Alimentarius, states if a primary product (e.g., shark liver oil, shark meat) is sent to a second country to be processed, the country where processing is conducted shall be considered and labeled as the country of origin (FAO 2001).

Diego Cardeñosa released a paper in 2019 on genetic identification of threatened shark species in pet food and beauty care products. Shark liver oil is highly valuable in the cosmetic industry as a moisturizer, using a multiplex mini-barcode PCR protocol to identify traces of shark DNA in beauty care, he was able to identify species to the genus and/or species level. It was myself (Madison Stewart) and Rob Stewart who collected the samples of pet food and cosmetics for Diego to test- they were from no specialty store in china town, but every day accessible USA brands. Diego’s research was able to successfully identified traces of shark DNA to the genus and/or species level in pet food products and beauty care cosmetics.

All sharks identified to the species/species complex level belonged to species near threatened or threatened with extinction based on the IUCN Red Lists of Endangered Species criteria. The shortfin mako shark, the most prevalent identified species in pet food products (71%), is a common cosmopolitan species that interact with many pelagic fisheries including longline and gill net fisheries targeting tuna and swordfish. The other identified species, the blacktip shark species complex and the Appendix II CITES-listed scalloped hammerhead shark, are among the top 4 most traded elasmobranch species for the international shark fin trade.

This study represents the first evidence of threatened shark species in pet food and cosmetics, highlighting the need for more traceability in the international shark trade in order to monitor and regulate the trade of less valuable shark byproducts. Moreover, shark populations could benefit if consumers have the alternative to choose whether or not to purchase products containing threatened shark species in order to decrease the global demand. Which means your choices to ensure your products do not contain shark are a huge step toward their conservation.


SIDE EFFECTS:


Squalene aka, shark liver oil has  been found to contain traces of the cancer-causing toxins.  Risks from moderate doses of squalene may include nausea, elevated blood cholesterol levels, diarrhoea, stomach upsets and other digestive problems. Taking excessive doses of squalene carries with it a risks of increased bleeding, and may actually elevate the risk of stroke. 


NOTE: Don’t confuse the two! Squalene is shark liver oil and a plant based version became viable for products, Squalane is derived by hydrogenation of squalene. 

Similar to cartilage, chondroitin is derived from cartilage and used in dietary supplements as an alternative medicine to treat osteoarthritis. It is commonly sold together with glucosamine. Chondroitin and glucosamine are also used in veterinary medicine. Most chondroitin appears to be made from extracts of cartilaginous cow and pig tissues (cow trachea and pig ear and nose), but other sources such as shark, fish, and bird cartilage are also used. Since chondroitin is not a uniform substance, and is naturally present in a wide variety of forms, the precise composition of each supplement will vary.

“Shark cartilage supplements are not recommended because they possess no distinct advantage over bovine cartilage, and pose a significant threat to the integrity of the world's oceans.” - VCA Animal Hospirals

Insufficient evidence to rate effectiveness for...

•   Heart attack.

•   Heart disease.

•   Osteoporosis (weak bones).

•   High cholesterol. 

Chondroitin sulfate can cause some mild stomach pain and nausea. Other side effects that have been reported are diarrhea, constipation, swollen eyelids, leg swelling, hair loss, and irregular heartbeat. Preliminary research suggests that chondroitin may cause the spread or recurrence of prostate cancer. This effect has not been shown with chondroitin sulfate supplements. Still, until more is known, don’t take chondroitin sulfate if you have prostate cancer or are at high risk for developing it (you have a brother or father with prostate cancer).

Always look for this in your supplements and medicine and ensure it is not derived from a marine form such as sharks.

Flake is a term used in Australia to indicate the flesh of any of several species of small shark, particularly the gummy shark. (27 species of shark are allowed to be sold under the name ‘Black tip shark’ (pictured above) in Australia). The term ‘Flake’ probably arose in the late 1920s when the large-scale commercial shark fishery off the coast of Victoria was established. When you see the word ‘flake’ in a fish shop for sale, it’s shark, when you buy fish and chips and that fish isn’t specified, chances are, that fish is shark. In 2014 A friend contacted me after ordering barramundi and chips at a venue local to my town, he said the fish in the mean had an odd texture, size, taste and was sold for very cheap. He concluded it was identical to shark meat. He suggested the large catch of sharks in Australian fisheries were unaccounted for in the consumer market… and that this could be why. This lead me take samples from all over Australia for testing, it wasn’t long before someone was caught out selling ‘Barramundi’ which our tests indicated was actually shark. 

Here are some examples of what was found in our testing;

We identified these samples with ‘DNA Barcoding.’ This is an established method in the scientific community for identifying species based on small fragments of tissue, scales or other remnants. The NATA accredited national measurement institute in Melbourne Australia conducted the mercury and arsenic testing.

Short fin Mako shark 40 times over the legal limit of mercury from a seafood store in Brisbane

Mako 30 times over the legal limit at Woolworths

Shark meat at IGA 10 times over the legal limit of mercury

Fish and chips shop in Mullumbimby NSW selling scalloped hammerhead (a protected species, illegal for sale in NSW)

Aptus seafood in Melbourne selling broad nose seven gill shark as ‘tiger shark’

Fish and chips shop in Cairns selling shark as barramundi

The tests revealed multiple infractions, including a protected species for sale, shark sold as barramundi, illegal and harmful levels of mercy in Woolworths shark meat, illegal levels of arsenic, sharks potentially carrying ciguatera sold and recorded conversations with government and health officials that failed to make any changes.

Junk meat, that’s all shark is, it has no value in the seafood industry as any sort after dish, blue shark is often sold for $1.50 a kilogram and used for frozen fish fingers. Shark fins however are worth allot of money, up to $300US/kg. As shark fining is illegal in Australia, keeping the body and selling the meat for our consumption is a way to sell and export the shark fins legally, meaning our Australian sharks contribute to the shark fin trade in Asia. And Australian people, left to consume the by-product that allows this trade to happen.

Previous shark fisheries in Australia have collapsed suddenly at the absence of vital knowledge about shark species and their fecundity and life traits. Without prior knowledge of such things, the application of the gauntlet approach (sustainable method of fishing sharks under 1.5 meters) lacks all validity, it also does not eliminate the potential for high levels of mercury or even ciguatera in the meat.

BAD FOR YOU; 

Big fish like sharks and other pelagic species have always been accompanied by a concern of mercury content. There is evidence that mercury exposure could lead to a spontaneous abortion of unborn foetuses. With no warning offered by Australian guidelines (which claims women may still have one serving of shark once every two weeks), an expecting mother, or a mother of young children can buy a piece of shark, and start the process of harmful mercury accumulation.

In the small amount of sample meats we obtained in Australia for mercury tests, 80% of contained mercury levels above the recommended level for human consumption, 6 samples contained illegal levels of mercury and two samples additionally tested for the presence of arsenic tested well over the limit. In addition to this illegal levels were found, Woolworths selling shark a staggering 60 times above the legal limit. A methyl mercury content capable of putting an adult at a minimum lethal dose after only three servings was also found.

Yep, “handcrafted with genuine exotic skin and premium leather to show off striking elegance!” Shark skin is used for shoes, wallets, belts, furniture and even the handles of hammers. It’s not uncommon to see them marketed as exotic or high end, when in reality it’s a different story. The use of sharks teeth in necklaces is also a pressing concern for the species, it’s best to steer clear of anything that isn’t fossilised, due to the source of the teeth being unknown.