Please repost this picture and @europeanparliament
Ban Shark fishing in the EU #bansharkmeat
When the headlines read 100 million sharks are killed yearly people gasp at the outrageous number. Yet few really ask who is doing the killing, or even who is doing the eating?
Studies show that European nations are n°1 consumers of shark meat, yes China ranks first in shark fin, but shark meat is also contributing to the mass killings of our apex predators.
Here are some scary facts:
The number 1 country fishing sharks is Spain.
Italy accounts for 10% of shark meat consumption. Germany eats a plate called “Schillerlocken” which is smoked shark meat in disguise and your daily pub serves fish and chips aka shark and chips.
Worst of all most shark consumers in EU are barely aware of what they are eating, usually duped into thinking it’s swordfish (which has been so overfished it’s rarely found in the Mediterranean)
Currently no EU country has any shark fishing regulation, or legislation advocating for transparency in regards to fish meat!
So we started a petition to beg the EU parliament to consider a ban in shark fishing. Here their response and our petition in full. If you are an EU citizen please sign our official PETI petition. It will be formally discussed this January 21st 2020, as such we ask you to please post this picture and tag the European Parliament:
If not please sign our Change Petition here.
Below the three reports we found that try to shed light on the reality behind the complex shark meat trade:
Project Aware infographics
Oceana Report: Head to tail: How European Nations commercialize shark products
The Guardian Article: Shark fin ban masks growing appetite for its meat
