We previously contacted Coop Italy on August 1, 2023, regarding our investigation into the use of forced labor in China's seafood processing industry. Our ongoing investigation has found further evidence, specifically regarding North Korean workers in Chinese plants.
We have investigators on the ground in China who have been engaging with labor brokers directly involved with the transfer of North Korean workers to factories in China. Through this and other investigative means, including collecting online footage from the plants and interviews with workers recently returned to North Korea fro…
Thank you for your inquiry. Please find our answers to your questions below.
- Does Coop have any comment to make in response to this email? Coop adheres to legal requirements as a matter of principle. We do not tolerate forced labour or poor working conditions in our supply chains. As part of the business partner contracts, our direct suppliers are signing our Guideline on Sustainable Sourcing, which addresses working conditions in the supply chains. Compliance with legal regulations is defined in our contracts and also in our Code of Conduct. There is zero tolerance for violations of labour…
Thank you for replying to our query and responding to those questions. The trade records show that Riberalves was the consignee for shipments of seafood from Haimeng in 2021. Did Riberalves clarify to Coop when its business relationship with Haimeng ceased? Can you clarify if Coop received any of the Haimeng seafood from Riberalves? We have emailed Riberalves twice regarding our investigation, but have yet to hear back from them.
Please find our answer to your question here below - Riberalves confirmed that no products from the named producers have been supplied to us during the period of 2021 to 2023, neither in previous years. Please contact the respective supplier and producer directly for any further inquiries on their business operations.