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Maw trade trade in fish Swim bladders from Africa to Hong Kong SAR

Published 11 February 2021

Demand for luxury food in Asia driving threats to high-value marine species in Africa

Cape Town, South Africa, 11th February 2021— A suite of TRAFFIC reports into high-value African marine products highlights yet another burgeoning, under-reported, unsustainable, and illegal trade that threatens the long-term survival of key marine species and the potential for sustainable human development.

Maw trade: a rapid assessment of the trade in fish Swim bladders from Africa to Hong Kong SAR

Report author(s):
Rebecca Constant, Markus Bürgener, Nicola Okes, Simone Louw, Madeline Frank

Publication date:
February 2021


Notes:

Fish maw is the commercial term for dried swim bladders. Swim bladders are an internal organ from that helps many bony fish to control their buoyancy. It is also referred to as gas bladder or air bladder. Fish maw does not come from one specific fish species and is difficult to identify its origins once it is packaged as a commodity.


About ReTTA

ReTTA is a TRAFFIC project aiming to Reduce Trade Threats to Africa’s Wild Species and Ecosystems. The project is funded by Arcadia—a charitable fund of Lisbet Rausing and Peter Baldwin.