Hunger for shark fins running high

Hunger for shark fins running high

Nana Rukmana, The Jakarta Post/Indramayu

Shark fins from Indramayu, West Java are in demand by people in a
number of countries in East Asia as indicated by the amount that
is exported each month -- up to 90 tons.

Hong Kong, Japan and China are the main destinations for shark
fins, with Singapore and Malaysia not too far behind.

One of the suppliers of shark fins in Indramayu is Sumangi
Tarmidi, 38, who runs a seafood-processing facility in Pabelan
Udik village, in Indramayu regency.

He explained that his company could process at least one to
three tons of fins per day from various species of shark caught
by the fishermen off the coasts of Java.

"We also accept sharks caught by fishermen from outside the
area, like Sumatra or East Java. But, at the moment, most of the
supply comes from the waters off Indramayu," said Sumangi.

Sumangi said that he started the business in 1990. His company
employs 60 people now and has a turnover reaching Rp 500 million
a month. He said that most of the processed shark fins were aimed
at the East Asia market.

"The biggest orders come from importers in Japan. Singaporean
and Malaysian importers have also done business with us. The
shark fins are sent to the designated countries through an
exporting company in Jakarta," said Sumangi.

The price of shark fins marketed by Sumangi varies according
to size. A large fin measuring over 36 centimeters (cm) costs Rp
1.5 million (about US$157).

A medium-sized fin around 30cm long costs Rp 1.3 million, and
a smaller fins under 30 cm is priced at Rp 700,000.

Sumangi explained that the sharks obtained from fishermen in
Indramayu consisted of various species, such as hammerhead
sharks, tiger sharks, the yong bun (weighing a maximum of 150 kg
each), kikir (75 kg) and karangan (120 kg).

"They are supplied by fishermen through the Karang Song
wholesale market in Indramayu district," said Sumangi.

Besides shark fins, fin cartilage can be used in the
manufacture of cosmetics. Fishermen sell the shark fin and
cartilage for between Rp 30,000 an Rp 40,000 per kg.

A number of fishermen at the Karang Song market said that they
had also reaped benefits from the shark fin processing industry.

Casmadi, 34, said that even though most of the fishermen here
had no expertise in catching sharks, those caught in their nets
could be sold at good prices.

Casmadi said that nearly all parts of the shark could be sold.

"Its meat can be sold to Jamblang rice sellers in Cirebon.
They call it cucut meat. It is cooked as a side dish with nasi
Jamblang," he said.

Nasi Jamblang, a specialty of Cirebon, is steamed rice wrapped
in teak leaves and buyers are free to choose the variety of side
dishes to accompany the rice. Nasi Jamblang is generally sold
under tents along the sidewalks of Cirebon. But nowadays, many
have established proper restaurants.

Sumangi was apparently at a loss for words when asked whether
the sharks he exported were protected or not. "I don't really
know whether the sharks we process are protected species or not.
But if I find out that they are protected, I would certainly not
use them. But I've never been reprimanded by the authorities,"
Sumangi pointed out.