Ban the Fin

100 million sharks are killed each year for their flesh, cartilage, oil and most often, their fins.

Shark fin soup is a delicacy so desirable that a single pound of shark fin can sell for more than $400 US. And demand for shark fin is so rampant that 90% of the world’s shark population has been decimated in the last 30 years. As an apex predator, sharks are responsible for keeping the ocean’s ecosystems in balance, so this unnatural disruption of their population could have potentially devastating effects for the future of the oceans.

The Campaign

In August 2011, in partnership with Shark Savers, a non-profit organization dedicated to the protection of sharks, we asked our customers to pledge not to eat shark fin soup and sign a petition asking their local government to enforce a ban on the shark fin trade. We also created the limited edition Shark Fin Soap, with 100% of the purchase price being donated to Shark Savers.

Healthy Oceans and Protecting Sharks

This video highlights the devastating effects of shark fin hunting, while encouraging people to join Lush on its mission to protect and save the sharks.

The Outcome

Through the purchase of Shark Fin Soap, we were able to make a $46,400 donation to Shark Savers. And just two weeks later, Shark Savers presented your petition signatures (all 5,160 of them in the U.S.) at a California State hearing and a ban on the shark fin trade was signed into law!