US Grocery Stores Selling Critically Endangered Shark Meat, New Study Warns

Shocking new research from a seafood forensics class at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has revealed that consumers in the United States who purchase legal shark meat are often buying meat from endangered species that have been mislabeled. Using DNA barcoding to test samples from grocery stores and seafood markets in North Carolina, as well as online vendors, the study found that 93% of shark meat samples were either ambiguously labeled or completely mislabeled. The meat came from 11 different shark species, including great hammerhead, scalloped hammerhead, and tope sharks, all listed as Critically Endangered by the IUCN.

Even more alarming, the study found shark meat—including from mislabeled critically endangered species—being sold for as little as $2.99 per pound, despite a severe global decline in shark numbers. In some areas, populations of great hammerhead and scalloped hammerhead sharks have fallen 90–98%.

This research underscores a broader crisis in the shark fishing industry: the lack of transparency and enforcement allows endangered sharks to enter the food system undetected. While the shark fin trade is one of the cruelest aspects of the industry, this study also highlights the role of the wider meat trade in driving rapid declines. Sharks are ancient, intelligent animals whose survival is critical to the health of our oceans, and yet the systems meant to protect them are failing.

For sharks to have a real chance at recovery, decisive international action is essential. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) has the authority to list all at-risk sharks under Appendix I, effectively banning the international trade of these species. Such a measure would address the systemic abuses that have allowed overfishing and illegal trade to flourish, while giving shark populations a fighting chance to recover and maintain their vital role in marine ecosystems.

Thank you for taking action for sharks by signing our petition urging CITES to do the right thing for these ancient apex predators. You can do even more by sharing this petition with your network.