A recent report examining the Marine Stewardship Council's sustainability certification system has raised concerns about the false perception of ethical sourcing amid hundreds of claims of labor exploitation within the fishing industry.
The MSC blue "tick" fish label is designed to make choosing sustainably sourced seafood simple by making certified sustainable products easy to spot in stores and on menus.
The Guardian reported, however, that those blue MSC sustainability ticks are creating an "illusion" of ethical sourcing and misleading consumers about the reality of the conditions for those catching the fish.
A study by the International Transport Workers' Federation found that one in five vessels in which crew members reported labor violations to the organization over the last five years were MSC-certified.
Instead of serving as a model for ethical practices, the research uncovered numerous reports of labor abuses in MSC-certified fisheries, including incidents of unpaid or delayed wages, excessive hours, violence, harassment, threats, denial of medical care, and debt bondage.
In total, researchers documented 80 instances of labor abuse on 72 vessels across 25 MSC-certified fisheries worldwide. The ITF added that the reported incidents may underrepresent the actual situation, as each of the 462 cases refers to a single vessel and may involve multiple abuses.
Dr. Jessica Sparks, a co-author of the report, stated that the findings add to concerns that MSC's policies may hide labor abuses in seafood supply chains by undermining enforcement and reducing scrutiny.
The MSC has engaged in efforts to promote the elimination of forced and child labor in supply chains, claiming to support fisheries looking to improve labor standards and prohibiting those with successful forced or child labor prosecutions.
However, Sparks pointed out that the very few prosecutions render the policy ineffective.
"We agree that MSC's policies are no substitute for businesses' human rights due-diligence responsibilities, and we make no claim to offer social assurance," a spokesperson for the MSC said, per the Guardian.
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Save $1,000 this year 💸 While the MSC maintains that it is primarily an environmental organization without a mandate for social assurance, Chris Williams from the ITF warned that this stance could obscure real abuses and mislead consumers into purchasing products that don't meet their expectations.
"That risks masking abuses and leading people to buy products that aren't necessarily what they think they are," he said, according to the Guardian.
It also highlights the broader issue of greenwashing — the use of false or misleading marketing to enhance a brand's environmental image — which occurs not just in fishing and the food industry but almost everywhere.
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