But apparently it’s about to be banned if the bill survives one more committee. The NRDC’s Leila Monroe reports that California is one of the largest markets for shark fin soup in the world, second to Asia. And, since it’s the west coast, plenty of celebrities are lobbying for the bill to pass (including my future wife, Scarlett Johansson). 

If you’re unfamiliar with shark finning, click this video of sharks getting finned alive, then being tossed into the ocean, still alive. It’s sick (imo, at least shoot the damn things in the head). 

This afternoon, California came one important step closer to banning the sale, trade and distribution of shark fins.   Assembly Bill 376 passed out of the Senate Natural Resources & Water Committee  with the support of Senators Pavley, LaMalfa, Evans, Kehoe, Padilla, Wolk, and Simitian.  This bill will help protect the estimated 26 – 73 million sharks killed each year for their fins, which are used to meet the exploding demand for shark fin soup.  The bill’s next stop is the Senate Appropriations Committee.   

California is one of the largest markets for shark fins outside of Asia; the ban will deter finning in international waters by ending the fin trade here.  More than 1/3 of shark species are threatened with extinction as a result of the international shark fin trade, with some populations declined by 99%.  This morning, the Sacramento Bee carried an excellent article about the importance of this bill, discussing how the opposition critiques are misguided and inaccurate.