House Members Call on Gov't to Sever Ties with Sysco Over Uyghur Labor in Seafood Processing
Nineteen members of the House of Representatives, along with three Pacific territory delegates, are publicly shaming Sysco for not cutting ties with Rongcheng Haibo, a processing plant in China that the Outlaw Ocean Project reported employs Uyghur laborers transferred from Western China (see 2310100030).
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"While some brands have already severed their connections with these implicated facilities, numerous other companies are still entwined with Chishan and have remained silent on the reporting," the members, led by Rep. Jared Huffman, D-Calif., wrote in a letter this week. Chishan is the parent company of Rongcheng Haibo and Shandong Haidu, two companies mentioned in the Outlaw Ocean report.
"While Sysco Corporation is not the only company implicated, its ties are of particular concern to us, as the United States government holds substantial contracts with Sysco Corporation," they wrote. They noted that Sysco supplies Sodexo, which operates cafeterias in the Capitol and congressional office buildings; they noted that tribes, federal agencies, VA facilities and military bases also have cafeterias that are supplied by Sysco.
"It is quite possible that we have unknowingly been served seafood products tainted by [illegal, unreported and unregulated] fishing and forced labor," they wrote.
They asked the administration to refuse to renew or extend contracts "with entities involved in the importation or distribution of seafood products produced through IUU fishing or forced labor."
The news release publicizing the letter noted that although Sysco announced on Jan. 9 "that they ended their relationship with Shandong Haidu, they did not sever ties with the other processor in their supply chain tied to IUU fishing and forced labor -- Rongcheng Haibo." Huffman said Sysco sought a meeting with him when the company learned he was planning a letter on the issue, and that during that meeting, and even in response to a follow-up letter, Sysco "did not concretely address key concerns regarding their supply chain."