Despite tightening transparency regulations across the globe and increasing demand from consumers for accountability, traceability in seafood supply chains is far from being as robust as it should be, according to a new report from London, U.K.-based investor network FAIRR Initiative.
The report, “Tracing Risk and Opportunity: The Critical Need for Traceability in Today’s Seafood Supply Chains,” analyzed the material business risks posed by insufficient supply chain transparency at seven of the world’s largest publicly listed seafood companies: Charoen Pokphand Foods (CP Foods), Marubeni Corp., Maruha Nichiro Corp., Mitsubishi Corp., Nissui Corp., Nomad Foods Ltd., and Thai Union.
Through this analysis, the report aims to help seafood companies achieve a longer-term goal of ensuring they can trace the origins of all the wild-caught and farmed seafood they sell, as well as the aquaculture feed ingredients they procure.
FAIRR Initiative Senior ESG Analyst Laure Boissat, who was one of the authors of the report, told SeafoodSource these companies were picked based on their sector influence and the readiness of their infrastructures to implement traceability efforts into their supply chains.
According to the report, all seven companies acknowledge the material business risks of insufficient supply chain transparency, but none have so far published plans to implement robust traceability systems. Just two companies – CP Foods and Thai Union – have traceability commitments covering all operations, and none disclose progress against these commitments.
“Despite Thai Union and CP Foods having a group-level traceability commitment covering all seafood operations and aquaculture feed procurement, the implementation of these commitments and reporting on progress remains limited,” Boissat said. “Other companies have a limited commitment, such as at the subsidiary or associate level, covering only specific locations or species or focusing solely on certified seafood rather than on full-chain, digital, and interoperable traceability.”
However, FAIRR said even just the …
