The Marine Stewardship Council has responded to claims made by the International Transport Federation in a study published in Nature, concerning forced labout in tuna fisheries.
‘We recognise forced and child labour is a complex and distressing issue affecting the seafood industry. However, the focus of MSC’s work is to address the immense challenge of overfishing and the environmental difficulties that this poses for the ocean,’ an MSC representative commented.
‘Contrary to the article’s assertion, the MSC ecolabel does not offer an assurance on forced or child labour. The article’s claim that we do is based on isolated use of the word taken out of context, ignoring the multiple times that we have emphasised the ecological focus of our program and the absence of a social claim from our ecolabel.’
The MSC states that independent research has demonstrated that the environmental focus of our ecolabel is well understood by consumers.
‘While addressing overfishing is our main purpose, we do support global efforts to tackle forced and child labour in seafood supply chains. We require any vessel implicated in a conviction for forced or child labour to withdraw from certification for two years,’ the MSC states.
‘To our knowledge there has been no conviction involving any of the vessels cited in the report. We recognise this is a complex area. The purpose of the public self-reporting templates cited in the report, although not intended to provide assurance, is to shine a light on industry practises. This transparency is intended to empower stakeholders to make decisions about how they interact with fisheries. The issue of forced and child labour can only be addressed by partners and stakeholders from across the sector working together to find lasting solutions.’
