"SAO PAULO - Brazilian authorities said on Monday they had seized 28.7 metric tonnes of illegally obtained shark fins that would be exported to Asia, in what they called the world's largest confiscation of its kind at the origin.
Environment protection agency Ibama estimated the consignment represented the death of some 10,000 sharks of two different species, the blue shark and the shortfin mako shark, which entered Brazil's national list of endangered species last month.
"These apprehensions on an integrated basis represent the largest recorded in the world, especially considering it is a seizure at the source where the sharks are caught," Ibama said in a statement.
Ibama's operation targeted two different companies, but others are still under investigation, said the agency's head of environmental protection Jair Schmitt."
Peter Frontini and Ana Mano report for Reuters June 19, 2023.
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