I claim to be an environmentalist and therefore I frown upon the consumption of shark's fin soup. But sometimes, holding on to your faith is more difficult than most.
I don't often get served shark's fin soup, which is a relief to me. And when I do, it becomes very difficult for me to say no. Reason?
1) It's possibly an occasion like a wedding. My poor friend had forked out a fortune to pay for it. The fish is already dead and cooked and served in front of me. It is an occasion to celebrate with my friends and I don't want to be a spoilsport.
2) Someone will point out that there is more crab meat than shark's fin in it. Again, fish is already dead and cooked.
3) Mercury content is very high, but then... you know... a bit hard to explain to everyone at the table why you refuse to eat the soup.
I have tried a few times to refuse the soup, but somehow I do end up ingesting it anyway, mercury and all. As it is, there is a very strong cultural link to it, which makes it hard to refuse the dish without being out of place and even rude! I so wish people would just stop serving the darn thing and save me this misery.
What I find most disturbing is the growing trend of non-Chinese ordering the dish which makes matters even worse. Something must be done to curb the demand. Anyone has any ideas on how to deal with this?
Sunday, April 8, 2007
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8 comments:
sharks fin soup used to be my favourite, until i saw gory images in a Wild Aid book. haven't touched sharks fin soup since.
declining a bowl of sharks fin soup is very easy. #1. someone else would be happy to eat it for you. #2. the bride and groom will probably never find out (assuming it's a chinese wedding dinner). fellow guests at the same table will.
just put it back on the lazy susan, or ask the waitress to skip a bowl. nothing all that rude about it.
not everyone is ready to give it up immediately, but they can be persuaded to on the long run. my family members don't order the dish when i'm there ;)
cheers,
pw
p/s mns marine group has a card that explains why sharks fin soup is not on the menu. our friends can make use of those!
what i usually respond when others make a fuss about me not eating my shark's fin soup is i tell them that shark fins contains too much mercury.
especially for pregnant ladies and children, their nervous systems are more vulnerable to the mercury poison or more precisely methyl mercury.
in Malaysia, fish is abundant and affordable. all fish contains mercury and eating shark fins soup on top of all the fish we consume a week is just plain silly.
sometimes its hard to resist, but since the fins don't actually have any taste or smell, merely providing texture, the cost of methyl mercury (not forgetting our wallet if we pay) is just too much.
sd
ps:- here's some useful references i try to email my dinner companions when i get the chance (might as well take the opportunity to ask for the email of someone you fancy at those wedding dinners ;) ):
http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/fishadvice/advice.html
http://www.fda.gov/fdac/reprints/mercury.html
http://flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/innews/mercfish.htm
My standard line is... fish are my friends...
I'm okay with people thinking I'm nuts. I don't really want to be rude and tell everyone at the table all the gory details as they're slurping it down (most of these people are probably strangers) but if people do ask like they really want to know (ie if they don't think I'm crazy) then I tell them everything. I'm beginning to think it might be a good thing to just carry some of our shark fin cards to weddings that we go to so that instead of having to reply - we can just give out the cards and smile.
pw - how's that for an idea?
and yes it's ALARMING how many non-chinese are ordering up shark's fin soup. but it's nice to see lots of articles being sent out about sharks since the Fins campaign began. yahoo... thanks for the support!
:)
mola-me
My refusal to consume shark's fin soup has influenced my colleagues not to order the soup when I am around. In fact, it's a good way to educate your friends and families when they enquire more from you. :)
what a lovely idea! how about small sharks fin cards that fit snugly into purses and name card holders?
Hey there! About you saying, the fish is dead and cooked...well, the fish is dead, yes, coz their fins were taken away from them and they were thrown back in the water to die. Seriously, did you know that? It's pure cruelty, that's why most of us who have a heart, don't have the stomach to consume it no matter how good it looks and tastes.
You can try these lines:
"My friend just choked to death eating shark fin last month."
or something more logical
"My friend's mum who loved shark fin was diagnosed with mercury overdose."
I have abstained from sharkfin's products since I started reading about how these so called "delicacies" are produced.
As the saying goes, when the buying stops, so does the selling.
I understand your dilemma.. I had that problem too but I just told myself to be strong. How do I refuse sharksfin? I just leave it on my table. If someone asks I just say, "I dont mean to be pretentious and rude, but I dont eat sharksfin soup because of ecological and environmental reasons.. nothing personal (silly smile)". More often than not, other ppl will eat my share before any questions are asked.
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