Correspondence
Email sent to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Acting Deputy Director of Communications, Ed Curlett.
The email said: "I’m contacting you in light of our latest investigation which concerns the use of forced labor in China’s seafood processing industry, and a link we’ve discovered between companies engaged in such practices and procurement contracts awarded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Public records show that, since 2018, the Department of Agriculture has awarded dozens of procurement contracts to seafood companies who source their products from Chinese factories which have received persons from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People’s Republic of China under a state-imposed labor transfer program.
The contracted companies and the respective Chinese suppliers are as follows: Bornstein Seafoods and OBI Seafoods: Rizhao Rirong Aquatic Products, a Rongsense Group company. The Rongsense Group has received Xinjiang labor since 2017. Ocean Beauty Seafoods, Channel Fish Processing: Qingdao Tianyuan Aquatic Foodstuff, which has received Xinjiang labor since at least March 2020. High Liner Foods: Yantai Sanko Fisheries, which has received Xinjiang labor since at least 2019.
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 the Department of Agriculture have any comment or statement to make in light of the above information? Please let me know by close of business July 13, 2023."
Paige at the U.S. Department of Agriculture press office replied: "Thank you for reaching out. I’m looping you with Allan Rodriguez, USDA’s Press Secretary." July 13, 2023: Allan Rodriguez emailed: "“USDA is committed to preventing forced labor and human trafficking. All agricultural products, including fish, purchased by USDA for use in food assistance programs are procured in accordance with the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) System, and must be grown and processed in the United States or its territories. The FAR implements procurement-related aspects of various statutes and Executive Orders, including those addressing forced or indentured child labor and the trafficking of persons. Thanks, Allan [Quoted text hidden] [Quoted text hidden] USDA includes FAR-prescribed contract terms regarding combatting human trafficking which outlines required notifications, contractual remedies, and contractor compliance with U.S. Government policy.”
Email sent to USDA Press Secretary Allan Rodriguez: "Thanks very much for your response to our query, we really appreciate the USDA’s engagement on this. We have some additional questions to further clarify this issue:-
- As we have identified five companies in the U.S. that are major providers of seafood to the USDA and these companies rely heavily, if not exclusively, on processing in China, how does the USDA ensure that all the seafood they’re providing through these contracts is processed in U.S.-based processing facilities?
- Does the USDA verify this independently or do you rely on the contracted company to provide the verification?
- If the latter, what types of information or documentation are required from the contractor to verify the country of origin and location of processing of the seafood provided under USDA contract? Could you get back to us on the above by close of business today?"
Allan Rodriguez replied: "Confirming receipt and we are working to get you a response – however, we will need some additional time. Please let us know would if it would be possible to get you something tomorrow."
Allan Rodriguez replied: "1. As we have identified five companies in the U.S. that are major providers of seafood to the USDA and these companies rely heavily, if not exclusively, on processing in China, how does the USDA ensure that all the seafood they’re providing through these contracts is processed in U.S.-based processing facilities? USDA requires that our seafood products be sourced in U.S. waters by U.S. flagged vessels and produced in U.S. establishments approved by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Seafood Inspection Program. USDA ensures this requirement is met by conducting pre and post-production, on site audits.
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Does the USDA verify this independently or do you rely on the contracted company to provide the verification? USDA and the Department of Commerce verify requirements are being followed by conducting on site pre-production and post-production audits to ensure that contractual, technical, and operational requirements of each Department are met. In addition to verifying compliance with requirements, these on-site audits verify that processing facilities are based in the U.S. or its territories.
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If the latter, what types of information or documentation are required from the contractor to verify the country of origin and location of processing of the seafood provided under USDA contract? Each contractor must declare the production facilities and shipping points they intend to use to produce products for USDA. In addition to on-site verification, contractors are required to provide documents during audits that show compliance with contractual, technical, and operational requirements including domestic origin. Contractors that source seafood from both U.S. and international waters or flagged vessels must have a segregation plan in place that ensures only seafood sourced from U.S. waters and flagged vessels is provided to USDA’s food purchase program."