Shark finning is a particularly wasteful fishing practice: fins are removed at sea and the rest of the shark is discarded. Ending it worldwide would not require banning every shark fishery—but it would require countries and regional fishing bodies to close enforcement gaps while protecting people whose livelihoods depend on the ocean.
The need for stronger conservation is urgent. A major global study published in Nature found that the abundance of oceanic sharks and rays fell by 71% between 1970 and 2018 as fishing pressure increased. A 2024 global assessment from the IUCN Shark Specialist Group concluded that more than one-third of shark, ray and chimaera species are threatened with extinction.
Finning is not the same as every shark catch
The distinction matters. Shark finning generally means taking the valuable fins and throwing the carcass overboard. A shark may also be caught for meat, skin or other products, either in a directed fishery or as bycatch. Those fisheries can still be unsustainable, but they raise different questions about catch limits, protected species, traceability and full use of the animal.
The United States prohibited shark finning under federal law in 2000 and later strengthened rules requiring most sharks to be landed with their fins naturally attached. A separate federal law signed in 2022 generally prohibits the possession, sale and purchase of detached shark fins, subject to limited exceptions.
Other countries and regional fisheries organizations have adopted their own measures, but there is no single enforceable worldwide ban. The Food and Agriculture Organization’s International Plan of Action for Sharks is voluntary and asks fishing nations to create national plans and cooperate on sustainable management.
Why livelihoods belong in the solution
Calling for an end to finning does not mean ignoring fishing communities. FAO says small-scale fisheries account for about 40% of global catch and support roughly 90% of the capture-fisheries workforce. In some coastal regions, sharks provide income and food where alternatives are limited.
That is why a fair transition matters. Governments can pair finning prohibitions with training, safer and more selective fishing gear, access to alternative markets, catch monitoring and direct support for communities affected by new restrictions. Fishers should be involved in designing the rules rather than being treated only as an enforcement target.
Traceability also protects responsible fishers. Reliable catch documentation can identify the species, origin and legality of shark products, making it harder for illegal operators to undercut those who follow the rules. Species-specific limits and protected-area measures can then focus on the populations at greatest risk.
A global goal needs more than a slogan
A worldwide ban on finning would establish a clear minimum standard: no animal should have its fins removed and its body discarded at sea. But a prohibition alone will not rebuild shark populations if illegal fishing continues, threatened species remain in legal markets or enforcement agencies lack resources.
Effective shark conservation needs multiple layers—finning bans, science-based catch limits, protection for threatened species, monitoring at sea and in ports, transparent trade records, and international cooperation. It also needs policies that do not push the cost of conservation onto families with the fewest alternatives.
Sharks have survived in Earth’s oceans for hundreds of millions of years. Protecting them now means rejecting wasteful practices while building fishing economies that can sustain both marine life and coastal communities.
Sources
- NOAA Fisheries: Shark management laws
- FAO: International Plan of Action for Sharks
- FAO: Sustainable small-scale fisheries
- IUCN: Global shark and ray status assessment
- Nature: Half a century of global decline in oceanic sharks and rays
