Correspondence
Email sent to Auchan's press office.
The email said: "I’m contacting you in light of our latest investigation which concerns the use of forced labor in China’s food processing industry, and a link we’ve discovered between a company engaged in such practices and Auchan's supply chain. Auchan’s own-brand Le Poissonnier products are supplied by Cité Marine.
Cité Marine’s seafood supplier Qingdao Tianyuan Aquatic Products has received persons from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People’s Republic of China under the state-imposed labor transfer program.
The United Nations, human rights organizations and academic experts agree that since 2018, the Chinese government has systematically subjected Xinjiang’s predominantly Muslim ethnic minorities to forced labor across the country via state-sanctioned employment schemes which use coercive methods in worker enrollment. The U.S. has prohibited the importation of goods produced from state-imposed forced labor.
Does Auchan have any comment or statement to make in light of the above information? Please let me know by close of business, July 6, 2023."
The Outlaw Ocean Project emailed Auchan's press office, saying: "Our investigation continues to surface questions in relation to your company's supply chain. Further to my previous correspondence, our research also shows that Cité Marine supplies pollock products from its Cap Océan range to Auchan. We have identified Uyghurs working at another Chinese processing plant supplying Cité Marine with white fish: Qingdao Lian Yang Aquatic Product Co. Ltd. Qingdao Lian Yang is linked to the plant mentioned in my email dated July 4, 2023, Qingdao Tianyuan, through corporate ownership. Our investigation demonstrates the presence of Uyghur workers at the site as recently as April 2023.
Additionally, our research shows that Northseafood Holland B.V. and Unibond Seafood International Ltd are white fish suppliers to Nomad Foods brands, which include the Bird’s Eye, Findus and Iglo ranges retailing across Europe. Auchan sells Findus brand white fish products.
Northseafood Holland has imported shipments of white fish, including pollock, from the processor, Yantai Sanko Fisheries Co. Ltd., based in China. Yantai Sanko Fisheries Co. Ltd. has received persons from the Xinjiang region of China under a government labor transfer program since 2019 and until at least April 2023. Unibond Seafood has imported shipments of white fish, including cod and pollock, from Qingdao Tianyuan.
The United Nations, human rights organizations and academic experts agree that since 2018, the Chinese government has systematically subjected Xinjiang’s predominantly Muslim ethnic minorities to forced labor across the country via state-sanctioned employment programs which use coercive methods in worker enrollment and obstruct freedom to terminate employment.
We have the following questions:
- Could you confirm whether white fish sourced from Qingdao Tianyuan or Qingdao Lian Yang has been used in any of the Cap Océan branded products sold by Auchan since 2018?
- Could you confirm whether white fish sourced from Qingdao Tianyuan or Qingdao Lian Yang has been used in any Auchan own-brand products supplied by Cité Marine and sold by Auchan since 2018?
- Could you confirm whether white fish sourced from Qingdao Tianyuan or Yantai Sanko has been used in any Findus products sold by Auchan since 2018?
Does Auchan have any comment or clarification to make regarding the above information? Please respond by close of business September 2, 2023, and note that all interactions are fully on record."
The Outlaw Ocean Project emailed two contact addresses for Auchan: "We previously emailed Auchan on July 4, 2023, and August 25, 2023, concerning our ongoing investigation into the use of forced labor in China’s seafood processing industry. Since then, we have uncovered additional evidence which we wanted to raise with you regarding Auchan in Portugal.
We have investigators on the ground in China who have been engaging with labor brokers directly involved with the transfer of North Korean workers to factories in China. Through this and other investigative means, including collecting online footage from the plants and interviews with workers recently returned to North Korea from China, we’ve found large numbers of North Korean workers at a range of seafood processing plants in Liaoning province, on China’s border with North Korea.
We have information that as recently as October 2023, there were hundreds of North Korean workers at Donggang Haimeng Foodstuff in Liaoning.
According to trade records seen by The Outlaw Ocean Project, Brasmar Comercio de Produtos Alimentares was the consignee for shipments of seafood from Donggang Haimeng in 2021. The trade records also show that Riberalves was the consignee for shipments from Haimeng in 2021.
Packaging analysis shows that cod products sold at Auchan are supplied by Brasmar and by Riberalves.
In light of this, we have the following questions for Auchan:
- While we understand that you may not be aware of the above issues, we want to ask if Auchan has any comment to make in response to this email?
- Can you confirm or deny if any seafood from Donggang Haimeng has been supplied to Auchan by any supplier since December 2019?"