Tide turns for shark fin in China

A sprawling market floor in Guangzhou was once a prime location for shark fin, one of China's most expensive delicacies. But now, it lies deserted, thanks to a ban from official banquet tables and a celebrity-driven ad campaign. One shopkeeper at the Shanhaicheng centre quietly ate his lunch at a desk, flanked by four glum-looking colleagues and giant white sacks overflowing with thousands of dollars' worth of unsold grey stock. Fetching as much as 1,600 yuan ($260) a bowl, sharks fin soup has long been among China's most prized dishes, renowned as much for its supposed medicinal qualities as for its associations with wealth and power. ‘We have a saying that if you eat shark's fin, it's good for your health,’ one woman working at a dried seafood wholesaler said of the delicacy, which has a bland taste and a chewy consistency. There is no orthodox scientific evidence for such claims. But the appetites of many Chinese diners appear to have been spoiled by authorities banning the dish from official banquets, and a national anti-shark-fin advertising drive backed by former NBA basketball player Yao Ming and other celebrities, according to AFP.