Shark finning

[Garrobo]

Since the Chinese and Japanese, not to mention a lot of other South Sea Islanders and west coast Americans, insist on eating shark fin soup, creating a huge demand for shark fins and due to the fact that the fishermen will certainly keep on finning sharks to supply the demand then dumping the carcasses overboard to certainly die a horrible death, has anyone come up with a scheme to induce the fishermen to keep the whole shark for market instead of wasting this supply of protein on the other fishes?

 

[Theunis]

I think that will be difficult inducing the fishermen to change their ways. It's all about money for those cruel money chasers. The same is happening in Africa with rhinos.... Killing those magnificent animals for their horns and leaving the carcas to rot notwithstanding all the famine in Africa.

 

[h90]

the only way is to avoid shops who sell shark fins and to support "crazy" groups like sea shepherd.

 

[Dorky-Corky]

good question. I wish there was more we could do. But presenting ideas like this is the best way to find an answer.

 

[buddhasummer]

yeh this is a hard one and needs addressing pretty quickley, as previous posters have mentioned as long as there are people willing to buy shark fin soup the slaughter will continue, it seems like an impossible task, but I think education is one key way, need to tell everyone you know about such pratices I live in Japan and am amazed at how many Japanese have no idea whats going on, it would seem ignorance truly is bliss and in their defence many are horrified whan I explain about whaling, shark finning etc etc and that the Japanese are one of the main players, obviously dont eat in any restuarant that serves said product, when I go to a restuarant here if its on the menu then I leave and tell them why I am leaving, does it make any real difference? I dont know but its all I can do, I like to think its something, support any organisation that is working toward conservation even if its only donating some money, anything is better than nothing, on an individual scale it doesnt sound like much but if you can get 6 million or 6 billion indivuduals doing so then its much easier to see the possibility of change. I wanted to do more but didnt know what so finally I decided I would stop eating all seafood, this may sound a little drastic and Im certainley not suggesting everyone do this, but for me it seemed to make sense, its not only the sharks that are suffereing but the whole ocean due to over fishing pollution etc etc, I am aware that some seafood is commercially farmed but I dont know which ones, I dont know who is doing what or how, so I no longer eat seafood. And of course it goes back beyond that, plastic bags for example, I mean you go into a convenience store buy a coke or something and they put it in a plastic bag, well here in Japan they do, the person then walks out of the shop and puts the plastic bag straight in the bin, I mean how stupid is that, anyway so I try to tell the people in my world dont take the plastic bags coz you dont need to, again its a small thing but if we all tell 10 people and they tell 10 people well ya get the picture. Sorry if this is a little soap boxy, I feel kinda strongly about this. Do we become the people who managed to preserve what little we have left or will we be remebered as the people who absolutely f....d it all up, given the knowledge we now have it would there are no excuses. Think local act global. So ends my speel. Thank you for listening/reading.

 

[Kim]

I live in Japan and am amazed at how many Japanese have no idea whats going on, it would seem ignorance truly is bliss and in their defence many are horrified whan I explain about whaling, shark finning etc etc and that the Japanese are one of the main players, obviously dont eat in any restuarant that serves said product, when I go to a restuarant here if its on the menu then I leave and tell them why I am leaving, does it make any real difference?

What kind of Japanese restaurant serves shark fin soup? I've never seen it anywhere and I've lived here for 9 years and been to a LOT of restaurants! It's not a Japanese dish....it's Chinese.

 

[buddhasummer]

What kind of Japanese restaurant serves shark fin soup? I've never seen it anywhere and I've lived here for 9 years and been to a LOT of restaurants! It's not a Japanese dish....it's Chinese.

Yokohama and yes you are correct they are chinese restaurants but they are being run by Japanese and I would imagine a good number of patrons are Japanese given the as you know low ratio of Gaikokujin to Nihonjin here.

 

[Kim]

Yokohama and yes you are correct they are chinese restaurants but they are being run by Japanese and I would imagine a good number of patrons are Japanese given the as you know low ratio of Gaikokujin to Nihonjin here.

There are LOT'S of Chinese here....... guest workers. Toyota uses thousands of them - as do other companies.

I don't know Yokohama, but in Kyushu Chinese restaurants are very rare. There might be some in Fukuoka and bigger places, but I've never been to one myself - or been invited to one either. Chinese food dosn't seem to be that popular around here.

 

[buddhasummer]

There are LOT'S of Chinese here....... guest workers. Toyota uses thousands of them - as do other companies.

I don't know Yokohama, but in Kyushu Chinese restaurants are very rare. There might be some in Fukuoka and bigger places, but I've never been to one myself - or been invited to one either. Chinese food dosn't seem to be that popular around here.

Hmm but you would still agree as compared to most other countries and certainly western countries, Japan has a low number foreigners save a few pockets of chinese and brazilians, perhaps more so than anywhere I have ever been, I can go sometimes a week or more without seeing another gaijin. And for those reading this Yokahama has China Town which may or may not account for the number of chinese restaurants I did not mean to imply that the Japanese all go around eating sharkfin soup, but my point remains.

 

[buddhasummer]

Oh and whats the diving like down where you are, we have a place called Izu, its not that flash.