Amazon bans sales of shark, whale and dolphin meat
Amazon has prohibited the sale of shark, whale and dolphin food products from its Japanese site and placed an explicit warning on its main site, in response to ongoing pressure from environmental groups.
Allan Thornton, president of the Environmental Investigation Agency, backed Amazon’s action.
“Internet sales are a major threat to endangered and threatened wildlife and we strongly urge all other Internet companies selling such products to follow Amazon’s lead,” Thornton said.
Whale and dolphin meat is considered a luxury food product in Japan, and shark fin a delicacy across many parts of Asia, including Hong Kong and Singapore.
At the beginning of 2012, Singapore’s largest supermarket retailer NTUC FairPrice halted sales of shark fins following an inflammatory online comment by one of its suppliers.
Amazon’s ban was implemented on March 7.
