By The Outlaw Ocean / Tom van Gurp
16 Oct 2023 at 05:04
Dutch supermarkets have sold fish made with Chinese forced labor. This concerns products from the British company Nomad Foods, which markets, among other things, the Iglo brand. This is evident from extensive research by the journalistic platform The Outlaw Ocean.
The journalists spent years investigating abuses at Chinese fishing companies. This shows that the sector involves forced labor, violence against ship crew and illegal fishing in the waters of other countries.
China is the largest player in global fishing and their products end up in Western stores, including in the Netherlands, through intermediaries.
For example, Dutch importers receive cod, sole and coalfish from Chinese companies that use forced labor. These are people from the western Chinese region of Xinjiang, where many Uighurs live who are severely oppressed by the Chinese state. They are taken from their region and are forced to work for fishing companies.
The importers supply the fish to Nomad Foods, among others, which processes it into products from various brands, including Findus, Birds Eye and Iglo. Almost every supermarket in the Netherlands has products from the latter brand on their shelves.
There is a high risk of forced labor in fishing
NU.nl asked supermarket umbrella organization CBL and various chains, including Albert Heijn, Plus and Jumbo, for a response. None of the parties directly addresses the abuses in the supply chain of Iglo products. The supers refer to the producer, need more time for a response or refer to the CBL.
Jumbo does report that it will submit the findings to Nomad Foods. “We have no access to the origin of their products, but they have signed the code of conduct. We will of course pass this on to them.”
The Brabant chain also states that it uses certifications and codes of conduct for its own brand items. Albert Heijn also states that it works with this for its own brand items and that it applies a code of conduct for suppliers.
The CBL states in a response that fishing is indeed an industry with a high risk of forced labor. According to the association, supermarkets are therefore committed to clarifying the conditions under which their products are made. They also look at possible forced labor and whether the environment is being damaged.
A Chinese fishing ship in the South Pacific Ocean. Photo: The Outlaw Ocean Project / Ed Ou
Chinese fish also available from Dutch importers
Research by The Outlaw Ocean Project also shows that Dutch companies import Chinese fish produced in factories where forced labor occurs. This includes NorthSeaFood Holland, Seafood Connection and Wout Taal Import.
The companies supply fish to customers in many European countries. In addition to the Netherlands, this concerns, for example, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. None of the importers mentioned would respond to questions about the matter.
2023-10-16 03:04:10
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