China will ban the serving of shark fin at official banquets, a move that environmental activists have applauded as an essential step to protecting the world’s sharks.
Shark fin soup has long been a delicacy and a sign of prosperity in China and the appetite for it has exploded as people have grown wealthier. Conservationists estimate that up to 73m sharks are killed a year for the soup, threatening some species with extinction.
The ban was proposed at China’s annual parliamentary session in March and ratified late last week, according to state media. The government said it would begin to implement the ban immediately but expects full enforcement to take up to three years.
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