Correspondence
Email sent to the management of Pesca Rich USA.
The email said that the company's supplier Rizhao Rongxing is a Rongsense Group company, and the Rongsense Group has received multiple groups of persons from the Xinjiang region under China's 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. The email also asked for comment.
Eriko Tsuji of Pesca Rich relied, saying: "We were quite shocked to read your email and immediately contacted Rizhao Rongxing Food Co. Ltd. They responded to us, "Our company is a legal enterprise because we strictly abide by the labor law and other laws, regulations, and rules of the People's Republic of China. There's absolutely no forced labor happening in our company". We believe Rongxing is honest about this, but if you have any more questions, please contact the company directly."
The Outlaw Ocean Project replied with further details on the U.S. laws regarding a prohibition on the import of goods produced or manfuactured, in part or in full, by forced labor. The email asked if Pesca Rich had asked Rizhao Rongxing to clarify whether any workers at the factory have been deployed from Xinjiang via a government labor transfer program.