The Australian Marine Conservation Society (“AMCS”) is urging consumers to stop the consumption of flake – a common term used for shark meat. Loopholes in Australia’s national environmental laws unfortunately allows for the ongoing commercial harvest of endangered sharks.

Under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (“EPBC Act”), marine species that are listed as vulnerable, endangered, or critically endangered are classified as “no take” species. This represents that they cannot be sold or exported.

However, there are eight marine species that are listed as “conservation dependent”- meaning that they can still be commercially harvested. These species include the blue warehou, eastern gemfish, the scalloped hammerhead and the school shark. Many marine conservationists have advocated for the abolishment of this “conservation dependent” class as it continues to threaten the existence of the marine animals. Specifically, AMCS called for the species list to be given the “threatened status” that they were eligible for.

The Humane Society International (“HSI”) is the main organisation in Australia that nominates species for listing under national environmental laws. One of the marine species that HSI wants to put forth as endangered is the scalloped hammerhead. Nicola Beynon, the HSI’s Australian head of campaign remarked that: -

“What we ask is that species be put in their rightful category because species that are endangered or critically endangered should be listed as that and protected from commercial utilization”.  

Professor Graeme Samuel, the former chairman of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, issued an interim report last July which showed that Australia’s environment was in unsustainable decline. While the report had several suggestions on how to improve the environment, none of them raised an issue on the conservation dependent category.

In Australia, retailers do not have to identify what species the shark is or where it is from. The shark meat is simply called flake, making it impossible to know whether one is consuming an endangered shark.

Leonardo Guida (“Guida”), a shark scientist at AMCS, stated that the organisation was launching campaigns to encourage consumers to be more aware of the need for shark conservation and to try sustainable alternatives instead of consuming shark meat. Some alternatives he proposed included King George whiting, farmed barramundi, mullet, wild caught Australian salmon and luderick. The difference between flake and the abovementioned fish was an average of $2, with some of the sustainable alternatives even being cheaper. In particular, he noted that: -

“Australia legally permits the harvest of endangered sharks, which can end up on people’s plates and they wouldn't even know because it’s often called flake.”

 Guida explains that in practice fishermen would record the species of the fish they caught, but by the time the meat ended up with the consumer, that information may no longer be the same. For his research, Guida sampled 10 fish and chips shops in each state and territory and less than a third of the shark meat on sale referred to a specific species. On the bright side, he stated that at least 40% of retailers offered sustainable alternatives.

AMCS has developed a website and an app called GoodFish to allow consumers to research on how and where to eat sustainable seafood. In Hong Kong, similar platforms such as Choose Right Today and Hong Kong Sustainable Seafood Coalition are in place to educate the public the importance of eating sustainably.

Courtesy of Arial Ng.

Main Source: The Guardian