Freedom United demands accountability from the seafood industry

A coalition of NGOs led by Freedom United has called on seafood distributors and retailers to provide updates on their investigations into potential exposure of their supply chains to forced labor involving Uyghur and North Korean workers. We took this initiative in response to multiple reports by the Outlaw Ocean Project highlighting forced labor in the seafood industry.

United for transparency

In a letter sent to 13 companies, we demanded transparency and accountability regarding investigations companies pledged to undertake following alarming revelations about forced labor in their supply chains. In addition to Freedom United, it was endorsed by 17 other organizations, including the Transitional Justice Working Group, Human Trafficking Legal Center, The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea, Advocates for Public Interest Law, HanVoice, The Citizens Alliance for North Korean Human Rights, Corporate Accountability Lab, International Corporate Accountability Roundtable, Humanity United Action, International Federation for Human Rights, Uyghur American Association, Anti-Slavery International, Uyghur Human Rights Project, Global Labor Justice, Investor Alliance for Human Rights, Campaign for Uyghurs, and Worker Rights Consortium.

Is your salmon tainted by forced labor?

“The findings on the investigations, which shed light on the use of state-imposed forced labor in your company’s seafood supply chain, are deeply concerning and demand immediate attention from all stakeholders in the industry,” the letter stated.

The Outlaw Ocean Project’s explosive first report, published last October, presented evidence that seafood processed with Uyghur labor in China was infiltrating global markets. A subsequent report revealed that North Korean workers were also being coerced to work in the seafood supply chain through Chinese companies.

China is the leading supplier of seafood to the United States and Europe and investigators managed to gather evidence implicating retailers like Costco, Kroger, H Mart, Safeway, and global food service firms, including Sysco and Performance Food Group.

Seafood Source reports,

That report led members of the seafood industry, foodservice distributors, and retailers – such as High Liner Foods, Albertsons, and Sysco – to cut ties from Chinese suppliers and pledge to commit to ridding the supply chain of Uyghur and other forms of forced labor.

Freedom United and its partners are now seeking updates from companies on the progress of their investigations.

“In 2023, Sysco stated it would investigate exposure to state-imposed forced labor in its downstream supply chains. Given the severity of the harms reported and the gravity of the situation and the potential impact on human rights and environmental sustainability, we are keen to learn about the progress of these investigations into your company’s seafood supply chain.”

Impossible to trace

To date, due diligence efforts have focused on screening out suppliers located in the Uyghur Region where detention and forced labor camps abound. However, state-run transfer programs are sending Uyghurs to factories around the country, making it practically impossible for companies to effectively trace the presence of forced labor in their supply chains.

Given the coercion and control faced by Uyghurs and other Turkic and Muslim-majority peoples in China, all state-sponsored labor transfers from the Uyghur Region should be considered forced labor by companies.

The Freedom United community is calling on all companies to cut ties with Uyghur forced labor.

Stand with us and take action today.