All industries should be held accountable for the way they treat and protect their employees. The Business & Human Rights Resource Centre gives us an eye opening account of the tuna fishing industry and the lack of concern for individual liberties among some of the major companies.
To shift toward more ethical consumption – consider switching to Bumble Bee Seafoods until StarKist and other brands work harder on transparent and ethical supply chains.
“Human rights abuse is endemic, including forced labour, slavery, and reports of migrant workers bought and sold as slaves and tossed overboard if they complain or get injured”
As consumers we can all do our part and shop only from the brands “working consistently to improve their approach to human rights” like Bumble Bee Foods, Thai Union and Clover Leaf Seafoods.
Read the full report here: https://www.business-humanrights.org/…/out-of-sight-modern-…
Key findings
Tuna companies are failing to support their policies with practical action on modern slavery.
- Two thirds (24 companies) have a public human rights policy.
- Half (18/35) report having a human rights due diligence process.
- But only one company (Thai Union) could outline its due diligence procedure in detail.
- Only 4/35 companies – Thai Union, Kraft Heinz Australia, Target and REWE Group – reported having due diligence policies and procedures that specifically address the risk of modern slavery in supply chains.
Tuna companies’ supply chains are opaque, with only 20% (7/35 companies) reporting they have mapped their supply chains in full.
Companies are generally failing to enforce their human rights standards in their supply chains with only 3/35 companies cascading modern slavery prohibitions throughout their entire supply chain.
A majority of tuna companies do not extend their complaints system to workers in their supply chains.
- 60% of companies (21/35) have a grievance mechanism for reporting complaints and cases of alleged human rights abuse.
- But only six of these complaints mechanisms are available to supply chain workers (Thai Union, Bumble Bee Foods, Clover Leaf Seafoods, Kaufland, Metro AG and Coles Group).
A few committed tuna companies (Thai Union, Bumble Bee Foods and Clover Leaf Seafoods) are working consistently to improve their approach to human rights, with innovative measures to address modern slavery, such as digital traceability of fish, and measures designed specifically to protect migrant fishers from abuse.
Read the full briefing Out of Sight: Modern Slavery in Pacific Supply Chains of Canned Tuna.
