Cupertino’s Chinese Community Reacts to Proposed Shark Fin Ban

The proposal to ban shark finning in California has stirred strong feelings within the local Chinese community.

Assembly Bill 376, introduced by state Assembly members Paul Fong and Jared Huffman of Cupertino and San Rafael, prohibits the sale and distribution of shark fins, including the Chinese specialty dish, shark fin soup.

Shark fin soup is considered a luxurious delicacy and a sign of wealth within Chinese culture. It is often served in weddings, banquets or formal business or social settings. Given the large, affluent Chinese population in the Bay Area, the demand for the soup worries environmentalists who want to curb finning. In addition, the FDA warns that shark fin has high levels of mercury, which is dangerous for consumer’s health.

“Current laws that ban the practice of shark finning are insufficient when we have species of sharks depleted up to 90 percent,” said Fong. “The demand for shark fin is growing, and the worldwide shark population is depleting to extinction rates. I say it is time to remove shark fin from the menu.”

However, state Sen. Leland Yee said the ban was drastic, calling it "the latest assault on Asian cultural cuisine." Some Cupertino Chinese residents agreed, saying they believed the ban was “aggressive” and that they would be disappointed if the ban was enacted. They urged the representatives to look more into regulating the practice rather than banning the food.

Other Chinese residents, like Henry Hwang, fully support the bill.

“It’s a good idea,” said Hwang, a resident of Cupertino for 35 years. “Protecting the animal is more important. I think that culture is being used as an excuse. The shark fin is very tasty, but there are substitutes readily available. It is the right thing to do.”

Shark finning involves cutting off the fins and tail from a living shark and discarding the remaining, less-valued carcass back into the sea to make room for more highly demanded fins. Oftentimes, the sharks are still alive when they are thrown back into the sea and die from drawn-out suffocation or predators.

The large-scale practice has made sharks endangered and now threatened with extinction. Scientists say sharks play an integral role in the ocean ecosystem by balancing the food chain and regulating the populations of other species.

Chinese Americans like Elaine Yu say the bill did not make them feel culturally targeted.

“It was proposed by an Asian, as opposed to a non-Asian, so I didn’t feel that was targeting Asian culture,” said Yu, a resident of Cupertino for 16 years.

Yu has had shark fin soup only occasionally for special events, and its taste didn’t leave a deep impression on her. “I personally wouldn’t be disappointed if it were banned,” said Yu. “My understanding is that most restaurants do not serve real shark fin. It’s imitation, which is often not very flavorful, but the real shark fin is pretty expensive.”

Elaine’s mother, Linda, says she doesn’t seek out the dish but won’t turn it down when offered. She says the older generation of Chinese Americans living here may feel more strongly about the ban than the second-generation.

“I never bought it [shark fin] at a store or ordered it as an individual item on a menu, but sometimes I ate it when it was offered at a banquet with 10 or 12 people,” said Linda. “It doesn’t matter to me whether they ban it.”

Linda adds, however, that she can tell the difference between the fake imitation fin and the real shark fin. “The real shark fin is tender, not chewy. There is not an innate flavor; the soup base adds it.”

Cupertino Chinese restaurants that serve shark fin soup were reluctant to speak about how they felt about the bill and its impact on their businesses. But two customers at Cupertino’s Hong Fu’s Gourmet Chinese Restaurant, which offers the shark fin soup for wedding banquets, say the ban won’t impact their eating habits much.

“I don’t have it too often,” said Virginia Nee, who grew up in Cupertino. Nee said shark fin looks like thin, clear noodles and tastes chewy.

Her friend, Jessica Chang, noted that the bill and the surrounding press is already slowly making an impact on the Chinese community.

“My mom has been reading about the ban and is now reconsidering eating shark fin soup again,” Chang said. 

If the bill goes through, California will be the second U.S. state to ban shark finning, following Hawaii's ban, which went into effect last year.