Shark Finning

Shark finning is the process of catching shark, slashing off their fins while the shark is still alive, and then the bodies are discarded into the ocean. Finning takes place in the ocean, as this way the fisheries only have to transport the valuable fins.  The sharks are left to suffocate, or be eaten by non injured sharks as they can no longer swim away. This is a million dollar business. 

 (http://wspa.typepad.com/.a/6a01156f3fc9e0970c011570253c04970c-pi)

This process threatens shark stocks, and endangers the balance of many ecosystems. This process has also been banned by the EU in 2003.  

Shark fins are used as an Asian delicacy – mainly as the key ingredient in shark fin soup – and sell for more than £200 per kilo. And it is this high price that has led to the spread of shark finning. Instead of taking the entire body of a shark back to port, fisherman hack off the animal's most lucrative parts, its fins, and then throw the rest of it away. The sharks can no longer swim and either starve to death or are eaten alive by other fish. Species targeted this way in UK waters include the shortfin mako, blue, smooth hammerheads and thresher sharks, as well as species such as Portuguese dogfish and gulper sharks.

(http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/organizations/ssg/iucnsharkfinningfinal.pdf)

(http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/oct/11/uk-shark-finning-ban-extinct)