Correspondence
Email sent to Erin Rolfes, Director of Media Relations/Corporate Communications at Kroger. January 17, 2023: A letter with the same text as the email dated January 10 was sent by certified mail.
The email described abuses on a jigger owned by Rongcheng Wangdao, including the death of one crew member and disembarkation of a second for medical care after mistreatment on board, and multiple indicators of forced labor among the ship’s crew. It then traced squid from that vessel to the Chishan Group processor Shandong Haidu, which supplies squid to Rhee Bros Inc. Rhee Bros then sells frozen squid for retail in the US under its brand Wild Sea, which is listed on Kroger’s website. It also noted Chishan ships had been observed fishing in North Korean waters in violation of UN sanctions. The email asked for comment.
Email sent to Kroger regarding Chishan vessel fishing illegally in Indonesian waters and asking for comment, given that Kroger’s Seafood Sustainability Policy says: “As a basic practice, Kroger will never knowingly purchase illegally caught seafood, which includes sourcing from illegal, unreported, or unregulated fishing fisheries.”
Email sent to Kroger detailing connections between its supplier, High Liner Foods, and Uyghur forced labor at Yantai Sanko. The email also asked for comment.
Email sent to Kroger describing the connecctions between the company's supplier, High Liner Foods, and Uyghur forced labor at the Chinese processors Yantai Sanko and Yantai Longwin. The email asked: Could you confirm whether white fish sourced from Yantai Sanko or Yantai Longwin has been used in any white fish products supplied by High Liner and sold by Kroger since 2019?
Email sent to Erin Rolfes, Director of Media Relations and Corporate Communications, saying: "Trade records seen by The Outlaw Ocean Project show that, between 2019 and 2022, Premier Marine Canada was the consignee for at least seven shipments of seafood from processors in China that have received people from the Xinjiang region of China under a state imposed labor transfer program. The processors, Rizhao Meijia Aquatic and Rizhao Jiayuan, are both owned by the Meijia Group. The Meijia Group has received persons from the Xinjiang region of China under a state-imposed labor transfer program since 2019 and until as recently as May 2023. We have uncovered evidence of Uyghur workers in Rizhao Jiayuan in 2019. Trade records also show that Premier Marine Canada was the consignee for seafood from Yantai Sanko Fisheries in 2019, a processor referenced in our previous correspondence with you regarding the use of Uyghur forced labor. According to Premier Marine Canada’s official website, Premier Marine is a private label partner of your company. While we recognize that you may not be aware of this problem, we wish to ask you: Can you confirm or deny if any seafood from Rizhao Meijia Aquatic, Rizhao Jiayuan or Yantai Sanko Fisheries has been used in any products sold by your company since 2019? Does Costco Wholesale have any comment or clarification to make in response to the above information?"