Thai Airways bans shark fin from cargo flights

Thai Airways has banned shark fin from its cargo flights as part of a growing global campaign against the popular delicacy in Asia.

The carrier joins a host of other airlines in taking a stand against shark fin, highly prized by many in the region, especially in Hong Kong and China where it is commonly served as a soup at wedding banquets and corporate parties.

"As part of the world community sharing in the great concern for the protection of endangered species and the environment, Thai Airways International has implemented its own official policy to place an embargo on the shipping of shark fin products," the airline said in a statement Tuesday.

Conservationists say booming demand for fins has put pressure on the world's shark populations, prompting calls for measures to restrict their trade.

Thai Airways officially stopped flying shark fin from July 15 but has avoided shipping fins for over a year, according to the statement. The move brings the carrier into line with a number of other Asian airlines including Philippine Airlines, which said in April it had stopped flying shark fin cargoes.

Air New Zealand as well as South Korea's two largest airlines, Korean Air and Asiana, separately announced last year that they would ban shark fins from their cargo flights, a year after Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific also stopped shipping them.

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