Correspondence
Email sent to two contact addresses for Canadian Fish Exporters.
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 your supply chain – Donggang Haimeng Foodstuff. We have uncovered evidence that Donggang Haimeng used North Korean labor after the December 2019 deadline for the repatriation of overseas North Korean workers required under United Nations Security Council sanctions. Furthermore, under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), passed in 2017, the U.S. prohibits the import of any goods produced by North Korean nationals unless clear and convincing evidence is provided that indicates the materials were not made with forced labor. This evidence shows North Korean labor at Haimeng’s factory in Liaoning, China, as recently as 2023. According to trade data seen by The Outlaw Ocean Project, Canadian Fish Exporters was the consignee for over 100 shipments of pollock from Haimeng since 2019. While we understand that you may not be aware of the above issues, does Canadian Fish Exporters have any comment to make in response to this email? Can you confirm if any product supplied to Canadian Fish Exporters by Haimeng has been supplied to Walmart, Giant, ShopRite or H-E-B since August 2017?"
The Outlaw Ocean Project sent a new email to two contact addresses for Canadian Fish Exporters, saying: "We contacted you on November 21, 2023, regarding the Chinese seafood company Donggang Haimeng. In that email, we said that we had uncovered evidence of North Korean labor at Donggang Haimeng’s factory in Liaoning, China, as recently as 2023. United Nations Security Council Resolution 2397 required the repatriation of all North Korean overseas workers by December 2019. Under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), passed in 2017, the U.S. prohibits the import of any goods produced by North Korean nationals unless clear and convincing evidence is provided that indicates the materials were not made with forced labor.
According to trade data seen by The Outlaw Ocean Project, Canadian Fish Exporters was the consignee for over 100 shipments of pollock from Haimeng since 2019. One of your customers, the Giant chain of supermarkets, recently informed us that Canadian Fish Exporters has not sourced from that Chinese company since December 2021. Trade records we have seen show several shipments from Haimeng consigned to Canadian Fish Exporters in January and February 2022.
Can you clarify if these shipments were the result of orders placed on or before December 2021? And can you confirm if you are still sourcing product from Haimeng or if that supply relationship has ceased?"