SFP Partnerships
Thai Union's Commitment to Seafood Sustainability
Reflections on the first year of our partnership
Read Thai Union’s blog “Five ways Thai Union is helping to save the oceans – with help from our partners”
Since 2022, Thai Union, the world's largest tuna company, has partnered with SFP to transform the seafood industry for the better.
Backed by its SeaChange® 2030 sustainability plan, and with the support of SFP, Thai Union has taken concrete steps and made ambitious commitments to reduce bycatch in its supply chain and improve seafood sustainability.
- The first step was a bycatch audit, conducted by SFP, together with Birdlife International and Whale and Dolphin Conservation, to identify the risks to sharks, seabirds, turtles, and other marine wildlife in Thai Union’s source fisheries. This was accompanied by an analysis by Key Traceability of Thai Union’s tuna fishery improvement projects (FIPs) and in the highest risk fisheries identified in the audit.
- Based on the results of the audit, Thai Union committed to source exclusively from vessels implementing best practices to protect ocean wildlife, and reiterated its commitment to 100-percent observer coverage (human or electronic) on tuna vessels.
- Thai Union took this commitment a step further by becoming the inaugural signer of SFP’s Protecting Ocean Wildlife Pledge, and urging other seafood companies to do the same.
- Chicken of the Sea Frozen Foods, a Thai Union subsidiary, is partnering with SFP and Publix Super Markets to design and test the use of universal fishery IDs in the Philippines blue swimming crab supply chain.
- Thai Union is chairing SFP’s Asian Farmed Shrimp Supply Chain Roundtable, to support existing aquaculture improvement projects (AIPs) and explore new models of landscape-level aquaculture management.
- Since 2018, Thai Union has been disclosing sourcing information through SFP’s Ocean Disclosure Project, completing its first full ODP profile in 2020.
Read more about the SFP-Thai Union partnership.
“The time for aggressive action is now. Through SeaChange®, we aim to drive meaningful improvements across the entire global seafood industry. Commitments this ambitious require the power and collaboration of partners like SFP that can help make long overdue structural changes a reality. Together, we’re asking the wider industry and our peers to join this effort.”
– Adam Brennan, Chief Sustainability Officer, Thai Union
SFP Biodiversity and Nature Director Kathryn Novak and Thai Union Chief Sustainability Officer Adam Brennan after Thai Union’s signing of the Protecting Ocean Wildlife Pledge.
Thai Union announces its commitment to only source from vessels implementing best practices to protect ocean wildlife at a panel during Seafood Expo North America 2023 in Boston. The panel was moderated by SFP Chief Executive Officer Jim Cannon (far right) and included (L-R) SFP’s Kathryn Novak, Key Traceability Director Iain Pollard, and Thai Union’s Adam Brennan.
SFP Global Policy Director Brad Spear (third from left) and Blake Stok, director of sustainability for Thai Union North America (far right), during a trip to the Philippines to visit pilot sites for testing universal fishery IDs in the blue swimming crab supply chain. SFP is working with the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization to create unique, standard fishery IDs for all of the world’s fisheries, to improve communication, transparency, and data collection.
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