SEE: Influencer apologies for eating a great white shark

This article may be triggering or offensive to sensitive readers. This is a matter that we intend to approach sensitively and is intended to raise awareness without judgement or prejudice.

Recently, a Chinese influencer made international headlines for all the wrong reasons. 

This food blogger, who uses the name Tizi online, has almost eight-million followers on social media. 

As shared by Unilad, in a clip uploaded to Douyin in July last year, Tizi was seen collecting the shark from a seafood shop before unwrapping it.

As you can imagine, this shocking video was shared to various social media platforms.

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The video in question captures Tizi saying: “It may look vicious, but its meat is truly super tender.”

In the video, Tizi goes on to cut the fish in half, before barbecuing its tail and boiling its head in a broth.

According to media sources, she also shared the meal with local villagers who all praise the food, while Tizi said: “This is so yummy!”

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Ultimately, the video was met with huge backlash from users all around the world. Social media users she’d eat ‘literally anything’ just to gain views.

One user says: “She literally eats anything to grab eyeballs. I was horrified when seeing her eat a crocodile tail once.”

While the influencer began to receive backlash, authorities launched an investigation after it was claimed that the shark she tucked into was a Great White - a species protected under Chinese wildlife laws.

A local news outlet, Red Star News, says that the food blogger denies any allegations of wrong doing as she "bought the shark legally".

Despite her denials, the authorities hit Tizi with a R336,601.77 (125,000 yuan) fine after DNA testing on remnants of the carcass revealed it was a great white.

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This raises the issue of consuming endangered species and we always have to be aware of the practices of the vendors we choose to buy from.

Watch more of this influencer's videos: 

Image courtesy of unilad-douyin 

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