MANZANILLO: Authorities seized 3.5 tons of shark fins and 529 kilos of sea bass swim bladders in Manzanillo, a coastal city in the western Mexican state of Colima, the Profepa federal environmental protection agency said.
The animal parts came from “wildlife in Colima” and had been dehydrated, the agency said in a statement.
Inspectors found the shark fins and sea bass swim bladders inside a shipping container belonging to an export firm and determined that the parts originated in Los Mochis, a city in the northwestern state of Sinaloa, the federal environmental protection agency said.
The animal parts were bound for Hong Kong, one of the main consumers of both products, officials said.
The seizure was made because the shipper did not present documents confirming the legal provenance of the products or authorization for harvesting the animal parts.
Both types of permits are issued by the Environment and Natural Resources Secretariat, Profepa said.
Sharks are included in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, or CITES, the federal environmental protection agency said.
