Shark is on the menu for millions of Brazilians, but few know

Mongabay senior editor Philip Jacobson joins Mongabay's podcast to discuss a two-part investigation published this year in collaboration with the Pulitzer Center about how state governments in Brazil have been procuring shark meat — which is high in mercury and arsenic — served to potentially millions of schoolchildren and thousands of public institutions. With Mongabay's Karla Mendes and Pulitzer's Kuang Keng Kuek Ser, Jacobson spent a year digging into public databases of government shark meat orders, called tenders.

"It's quite widespread," Jacobson says. "We found shark meat tenders in 10 states and shark meat being served or being procured for more than 500 municipalities."

Government nutritionists were also found to be recommending shark meat for school lunches because it has no bones, and even when one school official raised concerns about heavy metal contamination in the meat, her concerns were not heeded. Critics' concerns extend beyond vulnerable populations like schoolkids, too, since shark is also on the menus of public institutions like homeless shelters, maternity wards and elder care centers.

But since the investigation was released, one lawmaker has called for a parliamentary hearing to discuss the findings.

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Image Credit: A blue shark (Prionace glauca). Image courtesy of Ellen Cuylaerts/Ocean Image Bank.

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Timecodes

(00:00) Millions of Brazilians fed shark meat

(12:33) Impacts from Mongabay's investigation

(24:29) Marine related issues flying under the radar

(27:13) Why Phil chose investigative reporting

(32:40) The GIJN conference