KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia must enhance protections for endangered shark and ray species to ensure their survival, as there is a growing online market for their products, according to non-governmental organisations.
Traffic Southeast Asia and WWF-Malaysia, in a joint statement, said that based on their “From Sea to Screen: Malaysia’s Online Shark and Ray Trade,” study conducted between Oct and Dec 2022, there was a growing and lucrative online market for shark and ray products.
"The survey recorded sales across major e-commerce platforms — representing at least 5.25 million kgs of products.
"The study revealed that local consumption of sharks and rays extends beyond the shark fin.
"Online, fresh and processed meat dominates in volume, while whole bodies appeared most frequently in posts," the statement on Thursday (Nov 13) read.
The organisations stated that some of the shark and ray species identified in online sales posts were from highly threatened species.
"This includes the critically endangered wedgefish and endangered whiprays.
"All identified shark species and nearly all ray species from the listing are native to Malaysian waters, with none specifically protected under the Fisheries Act 1985,” the statement read.
