Ogilvy launches PSA campaign to take down Shark Fin soup as a luxury delicacy

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For a long time, shark fin soup has been regarded as an invaluable delicacy on the menus at fancy banquets and weddings in China. Renowned for its status as a ‘rich man’s food’, it is an obligatory dish for anybody with a bit of money to throw around, to try.

 

Fortunately for animal lovers, a new PSA campaign released by Ogilvy & Mather hopes to change this long going trend. Together with the Hong Kong Shark Foundation and WildAid, the aim is to “rebrand” shark fins as a product of cruelty and environmental degradation.

 

• In the campaign ad, fisherman hunting sharks were recorded by the Hong Kong Shark Foundation.
• Using CGI, the fisherman would be replaced with a bride and groom to depict the method in which the fins are cut off the sharks before they are dumped into the water.
• The gruesome ad ends with the young couple kissing while covered with blood, stating that for a typical wedding feast in Hong Kong, 30 sharks have to die.

 

Thanks to high demand for shark fins, the Hong Kong Shark Foundation says that more sharks are being killed annually than is needed to sustainably reproduce. As a result, the governments of mainland China and Hong Kong have both banned shark fin soup from the menus at government events. However with over 143 shark species being currently listed as either critically endangered, endangered or vulnerable due to 15 years of overfishing, has this change come too late?

 

Ogilvy & Mather’s new ad is targeted at the younger generation, and according to the firm, aims to take away the glamour and luxurious image of shark fins. Ogilvy’s Chief Creative Officer, Reed Collins says:

 

“We are enormously proud of our partnership with Hong Kong Shark Foundation and WildAid, and are 100 percent supportive of the important work they do,” says Ogilvy & Mather Hong Kong Chief Creative Officer Reed Collins. “Our PSA will challenge the traditional practices of Hong Kongers and ask them to step up for the sake of sharks, who are a critical part of the world’s precious marine ecosystem.”

Source: Jing Daily