Migrant workers trafficked into the Thai fishing industry are sometimes described as ‘sold to the sea.’ These men, particularly work-seeking Burmese, often face a perfect storm of poverty-based need and debt bondage, extreme hardship, physical danger and isolation—corporate accountability lost in opaque supply chains, the regulatory dead space of international waters and scarce enforcement where laws apply.
As more consumers demand sustainable seafood, businesses are starting to pay attention to where and how their seafood is sourced. Many businesses have taken steps to address the environmental sustainability of their seafood supply chains, but as several recent media stories have highlighted, those same companies may also have risks of human rights abuses, including modern-day slavery, in their supply chains.
