By Abigail Rowe

NYU released what has to have been the most-read Dining Services email in the history of “The Scoop” earlier this week, when students noticed their plan to serve shark tacos. Shortfin mako sharks are a threatened species, and almost everyone agreed that they belong in the Gulf of Mexico, not in a cafeteria. The student response was immediate and effective. NYU pulled the item hours after the email went out, so shark meat never touched a student’s tray.

Davis Saltonstall and Emma Spett, president and vice president of EarthMatters, NYU’s largest on campus environmental club, spearheaded the campaign against Shark Bite Taco Tuesday after seeing it promoted through an online flyer. Spett, a Gallatin junior studying conservation ecology and environmental sustainability, told us, “I emailed my professor, Jennifer Jacquet, as to whether or not this specific type of shark was worth causing a stir over. She said it was.”

Saltonstall and Spett contacted other campus environmental groups along with professors and students who were passionate about sustainable fishing practices. They also wrote an email draft to Dining Services representative Ann Marie Powell and posted it to Facebook, encouraging everyone to reach out and show support. NYU Local contacted Powell as well, though she did not reply to our request for comment.

Just four hours later, NYU Dining emailed students explaining that their “earlier statement regarding offering a Shark Bite Taco was incorrect.” Spett noticed the university’s attempts to hide what proved to be a very unpopular decision, explaining, “This morning, they had hidden the sign stating that they were serving it, although I found it stashed away at the back of Downstein.”

We asked Spett to explain to us, in laymen’s terms, what exactly would be so bad about serving the mako shark:

“Eating shark is problematic for two reasons. First, sharks are carnivores. Carnivores are responsible for balancing ecosystem populations by eating smaller fish. If top-tier predators are removed, then there can be an explosion of fish populations that can harm the ecosystem by exceeding its carrying capacity. Secondly, sharks are fished in such a way that they have become endangered in most cases, displaying a severe decline in predator populations in the ocean. As responsible stewards of the planet, and as students of a university that supposedly prides itself on its devotion sustainability, we cannot in good faith serve a species listed as ‘vulnerable’ by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, which is one step above endangered.”

Both Saltonstall and Spett are hoping that the success in preventing the mako shark meat can be extended to promoting greater sustainability throughout NYU Dining, and informed us of the Real Food Challenge Campaign, which looks to bring sustainable, fair, and humane food to campuses across the United States. Saltonstall tells us, “If students really want to see major changes in dining hall operations over the next year, we’re going to need to continue to mobilize around the issue.”

NYU Secrets was also instrumental in gaining support for their cause. Although neither Saltonstall nor Spett submitted the initial secret, #”8923: am I the only one that’s disgusted by the fact that shark meat is going to be served at Weinstein?”, it certainly earned the attention of the wider NYU community (thanks, Aristo!).

Local also got in touch with NYU rep John Beckman. When we asked where the shark meat was sourced from, he told us, “Our food service provider, Aramark, partners with Monterey Bay Aquarium and follows their Seafood Watch guidelines for sourcing sustainable seafood.” He also maintained that listing mako on the menu was a mistake, saying, “Once this error was discovered, the item was promptly removed from the menu promotion scheduled for Tuesday.”

Beckman also pointed out that, “As was the case with Left Shark, we were just a little out of step on this one.”

You can read more about EarthMatters here, the Real Food Challenge here, and the dangerous impacts of overfishing here.

[Image courtesy of Patrick King]