Shark fins are used primarily to make shark fin soup, a traditional Chinese soup or broth that is considered a luxury item embodying notions of hospitality, status, and good fortune. The cartilage in the fins is usually shredded and used primarily to provide texture and thickening to the soup. Shark fins are also used in traditional Eastern medicine as well as in some supplements in Western countries and in certain cosmetics. However, there is no nutritional value for humans eating the fins, and they are practically tasteless. The demand for shark fins has led to the practice of shark finning, which involves cutting off a live sharks fins and throwing the rest of the animal back into the sea, where it dies a slow and painful death. Shark finning is cruel, unsustainable, and wasteful, and it is pushing many shark species to the brink of extinction. Sharks are apex predators and have extensive implications for marine systems and processes, particularly coral reefs. Many hotels and airlines have banned serving shark fin soup, and several shipping companies no longer transport it.