14 DAY TRIAL // This past Sunday, Premier Xi Jinping announced that, thanks to new legislation, shark fin soup would no longer be served at official banquets in China.
As one infographic released earlier this year shows, sharks kill about a dozen people throughout an entire year. Humans on the other hand slaughter thousands of these animals each hour, and the shark fin industry is one of the main culprits behind this death toll.
Hence, conservationists were glad to hear that shark fin soup, which is considered to be a delicacy in China, would no longer be served at official receptions held across the country.
In all fairness, Chinese officials have only decided to pull this dish off official banquet menus because they are trying to better regulate the public funding that goes into organizing these feasts, International Business Times reports.
Thus, they have also outlawed bird's nest soup, abalone (i.e. edible sea snails) and other expensive wild-animal products. What's more, low-rank officials are no longer allowed to stay in suites during their business trips.
According to Chinese state news agency Xinhua, the goal of these measures is to “promote frugality, oppose extravagance and enhance the anti-corruption efforts among Party and governmental authorities.”