The basic facts you need to know about shark fin soup

1. Shark fin is just cartilage, so the soup-as-food product’s taste depends on the stock and additives, usually through chicken, pork and more.
2. Shark fin soup as a dish has its allure not because of the flavour, but because it is a statement for honouring one’s guests.
3. The point here is that it’s expensive, so offering an expensive dish to one’s friends/relatives/colleagues sends the signal that you are honouring them.
4. Attempts have been made to create fake/simulated shark fin soup using bean noodles or some such.
5. However they basically fail because it wouldn’t have the show-off appeal as per point 3.

Sharks are being decimated to feed the shark trade, and the shark trade is not only about shark fin, there’s shark meat, shark oil, teeth and more.

Related posts:

1. UN asked to regulate shark fin trade
2. No more shark in UK fish and chips
3. China to stop shark fin trading
4. Manta Ray fin soup
5. Apex predator to Soup