Sunday, November 4

Cathay Pacific bans shipments of shark related products

Months of campaigning Cathay Pacific regarding it's air freight shipments of shark fins and shark products have paid off. Initiated by Alex Hofford / Ran Elfassy and backed by many of the worlds shark groups and NGO's, Cathay Pacific have taken the responsible decision to stop all shipments of un-sustainable shark fins and products. Below is their press statement. A great day for the sharks, a great day for Cathay Pacific who will gain a massive respect from all ocean lovers that will hopefully equate to more business for them. Other airlines please take note....

CX (Cathay Pacific) to ban shipments of unsustainable sharks and shark-related products

News out 04 Sep 2012
As part of the Sustainable Development Strategy, Cathay Pacific has a policy on sustainable seafood which prohibits the consumption of shark and shark fin at company events and from being served inflight.

Today (4 September) the airline has taken the decision to stop shipments of unsustainably sourced sharks and shark-related products. This means that, effective immediately, CX will not enter into any new contracts in this regard, unless it can be demonstrated that such products are derived from sustainable sources and can be independently verified through initiatives such as the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC).

The airline has decided to do this on the basis that there is very compelling scientific evidence to support that this is the right thing to do, given CX’s strong commitment to sustainability.

Specifically, due to the vulnerable nature of sharks, their rapidly declining population and the impacts of overfishing for their parts and products, the carriage of these is inconsistent with the airline’s mission of being a socially and environmentally responsible company.

Cathay Pacific Cargo and the Environmental Affairs team have been working very hard on this issue and have established an advisory group that includes respected NGOs to review, from a scientific perspective, the current policy.

The new policy will be implemented through notifications to shippers, new procedures and training for CX staff. The airline estimates it will take approximately three months to make the transition, although work will be done as quickly as possible.

No comments:

Post a Comment