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Billion-Dollar Eels

Why smuggling one endangered species of fish from Europe to Asia is a billion-dollar business

European glass eels are worth a fortune in East Asia, where they're regarded as a delicacy in restaurants in China and Japan. But the lucrative smuggling trade from Europe to Asia is contributing to their status as an endangered species. Ed Butler tries some eel in a restaurant in Japan while UN researcher Florian Stein describes the scale of the smuggling. Andrew Kerr, chairman and founder of Sustainable Eel Group, explains the risks to the species in Europe.

(Photo: A fisherman holds glass eels fished in France, Credit: Getty Images)

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18 minutes

Last on

Tue 11 Dec 2018 13:32GMT

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  • Tue 11 Dec 2018 08:32GMT
  • Tue 11 Dec 2018 13:32GMT

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