Correspondence
Email sent to the sales team and contact addresses at Chicago Oriental Wholesale Market.
The email said that the Market stocks Sea Relation's Sea Apple squid products, and that Sea Relation imports squid from the Chinese processors Shandong Haido and Rongcheng Haibo. Shandong Haidu and Rongcheng Haibo have 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, and obstruct freedom to leave employment. The U.S. has prohibited the importation of goods produced from state-imposed forced labor. Shandong Haidu and Rongcheng Haibo are Chishan Group companies. Fishing vessels owned by the group have been observed fishing in North Korean waters in contravention of UN sanctions and fishing illegally in Indonesian waters. The group also owns at least two reefer vessels which have transshipped with dozens of fishing ships tied to illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing as well as human rights abuses. The email asked for comment.
The Outlaw Ocean Project emailed two contact addresses for Chicago Oriental Wholesale Market: "We previously contacted Chicago Oriental Wholesale Market on July 17, 2023, regarding our investigation into China’s seafood processing industry and squid fishing fleet. We are contacting you now to highlight additional findings made in our ongoing investigation, as they relate to your supply chain.
According to our research, Imaex Trading provides squid products under its Captain A and Beauty Wing brands to Chicago Oriental Wholesale Market. Trade data seen by The Outlaw Ocean Project shows that Imaex Trading was the consignee for dozens of shipments of seafood from a Chinese company called Dandong Hailong Foodstuff since 2019. We have uncovered evidence that Dandong Hailong Foodstuff used North Korean labor after the December 2019 deadline for the repatriation of overseas North Korean workers required under United Nations Security Council sanctions.
This evidence shows North Korean labor at Dandong Hailong Foodstuff’s factory in Liaoning, China, as recently as 2023. 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.
While we understand that you may not be aware of the above issues, we want to ask: does Chicago Oriental Wholesale Market have any comment to make in response to this email?"