An environmental, social, and governance (ESG) report filed by Chinese fishing company China Ocean Group Development has been described as “shocking” for its lack of material disclosures.
Since 2021, any company listed on the Hong Kong exchange is required to file an ESG report annually. But, China Ocean Group Development offers little detail on its operations in its 2023-2024 report, filed as part of the requirements of its listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, said François Mosnier, head of the ocean program at Planet Tracker, a London, U.K.-based think tank.
“It is a shocking ESG report for a seafood company and a great example of ‘greenhushing’ – when corporate management teams underreport or hide their sustainability credentials in order to evade investor scrutiny,” Mosnier told SeafoodSource. “In the ESG report of a seafood company, I would expect to see at least some vague references to what, how, and where seafood is harvested.”
Mosnier pointed to one specific passage in the report – “As a non-manufacturing company, the group and its daily operations have no significant impact on the environment and natural resources” – as being particularly egregious. In the report, China Ocean describes itself as “primarily involved in the business of supply chain management services and ocean fishing.”
“[It] shocked me, as it completely denies the reality of the impact of fishing on natural resources,” Mosnier said.
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