Jan 21 2012
Shark Fin & Sustainable Seafood
I’ve never been a fussy eater. In fact, growing up I was a bit of a human dustbin.
But things seemed to have changed as I got older and became more concerned with what I was throwing in the dustbin.
One of my (many) New Year resolutions for 2012 was to cut out meat. Well… I haven’t turned vegetarian.. rather I have become pescatarian.. (Though I sometimes feel I should be rephrased more as pest when dining with friends as I becoming increasingly choosey.) This basically means that I don’t eat meat; however, I do consume seafood, fruit and veg, dairy and so on.
Like many other consumers I have become more aware of what I ingest, and this is the inspiration behind the topic of this week’s Eco Ventures, “Sustainable Seafood”.

Do you know where your catch of the day comes from? Do you ring ahead and ask hotels if they serve shark fin? Many may not ask such questions, but if you do, you are most definitely not alone.
Speaking to hotels in Singapore this week,I found out this is becoming an increasing phenomenon. Some consumers are calling ahead of Chinese Lunar New celebrations next week to find out if shark’s fin will be served before attending a seasonal lunch or dinner.
Michael Tan, Director of F&B at Four Seasons Hotel Singapore cited this call from a consumer. “He (the customer) was invited for a yu-sheng celebration here with us, which is a big thing here, and he called and asked if we have shark fin on the menu and we told him no, and he was so pleasantly surprised he said ‘Look, I’m coming!’ ”.

Four Seasons Singapore removed shark fin from its menu on 31st December 2011, and Mr Tan says there has been no change in the number of customers coming through restaurant doors. “I believe it is a positive impact on our business,” he adds.

In place of shark fin, Four Season offers a host of delicious soups.
This week, another big hotel chain, Shangri La, jumped on the bandwagon, with its own ‘Sustainable Seafood Policy.’
In a statement Shangri – La said:
“Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts today (17th January) announced its ‘Sustainable Seafood Policy’ including the commitment to cease serving shark fin in all of its operated restaurants as well as accepting new orders for shark fin products in banqueting with immediate effect. Future banquet bookings made prior to this date will be honoured as per the signed contractual agreement. At the same time, Shangri-La announced that it will phase out Bluefin tuna and Chilean sea bass in all its operated restaurants within the year.”
Well, here are some facts that might shock you….
According to World Wide Fund for Nature:
1. 73 million sharks are killed every year, primarily for their fins.
2. In 1996 only 15 shark and related species were considered threatened. This has soared by 12 times in over a decade and by 2010 over 180 species were considered threatened
3. Singapore is the second largest shark fin trading nation
Another hotel chef told me that there is nothing wrong with the physical action of eating shark fin, but just the manner in which the shark is caught. That’s because the sharks are often caught just for their fins, and then thrown back into the ocean – left to sink to the bottom to die a slow and painful death.
Other than banning shark fin on menus, there are a number of other ways hotels are going sustainable when it comes to seafood.
For example, Grand Hyatt sources sustainably-fished produce. The salmon it uses is farmed organically in Ireland and provided on a seasonal basis. Chef Lucas at the Grand Hyatt tells me he is taking a top down approach, and from about a year ago, he looked at items which have the highest consumption, and searched for sustainable sources.. and looks to bring that down through items served.
Chef Lucas also says that if we start consuming what is seasonally available, and only what we actually need, we can make a big difference.
And he is probably right. You’ll recall that recently the campaign toward banning shark fin in Singapore received a boost when supermarkets Carrefour and NTUC FairPrice made the decision to remove it their shelves.








