ABC Sardines
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 23 October 2026 · 9 sources
Indonesian canned sardine range of PT Heinz ABC Indonesia, part of Kraft Heinz.
ABC Sardines is rated as part of a company that scored 8/100 in the 2026 KnowTheChain benchmark, and workers in Indonesia are very unlikely to earn a living wage.
Know something we've missed? Send evidence. Represent ABC Sardines? Send a right of reply.
Compare ABC Sardines with another brand
Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 1 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has 4 red flags: no evidence of a living wage, a hidden, unaudited supply chain in high-risk countries, a failing or very low rating (KnowTheChain 8/100 in 2026, for the company it's rated with) and fish and seafood it can't trace to the boat or farm. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
- It isn't Harm on record, because there's no serious confirmed problem on its record.
- Lacks transparency is still a poor grade: in supply chains like this, workers who can't be seen to be treated fairly are usually underpaid or unprotected.
Good requirements 1 of 6
- Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
- Not met: Respects worker rightsMost of its products are made in countries such as Indonesia and Thailand, where unions are heavily restricted, and it has no full supply chain audit.
- Not met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standards
- Met: No child or forced labour findings or links
- Not met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that list
- Not met: Traces its catch to the boat or farm and has crews' or farm workers' conditions checked independently
Red flags 4
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
- Red flag: Hidden supply chain, mostly in countries with poor worker rights
- Red flag: Failing or very low score on an independent rating: KnowTheChain 8/100 (2026, the company it's rated with)
- Red flag: Relies on fish and seafood it can't trace to the boat or farmShown to explain the grade. It isn't one of the 3 red flags that set it.
- Red flag: Fails its category's raw-material check (means Lacks transparency)
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Where it's made
From press and retailer reports; ABC Sardines doesn't say where its products are made. The rest is shown as where fish and seafood are usually processed.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indonesia | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| ThailandUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| ChinaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| VietnamUsual for the industry | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| IndiaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | High |
| AustraliaUsual for the industry | Strong protections | About a living wage | Low |
| EcuadorUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| NorwayUsual for the industry | Strong protections | About a living wage | Low |
Evidence
What we found
- Risk across the industry, not a finding about this company: fishing fleets and processing plants have some of the worst documented forced labour, including trafficked crews held at sea for years.
- Relies on fish and seafood from fishing boats and farms, where crews and farm workers, often migrants recruited into debt, have been held for months or years, beaten and denied pay, out of reach of factory audits. It hasn't shown any steps to trace its fish and seafood to the boat or farm or have the conditions of the people who catch or farm it checked, so it's graded Lacks transparency until it does.
Research notes ABC canned sardines and mackerel are registered as local Indonesian products of PT Heinz ABC Indonesia, 65% owned by Kraft Heinz since 1999. Heinz ABC's own factories (Daan Mogot, Pasuruan, Karawang) make sauces and drinks, and a 2015 university study named a contract cannery in Muncar, Banyuwangi as a maker of ABC sardines; no plant or vessel list is published. Kraft Heinz's modern slavery statement does not cover seafood, and no certification or crew checks are reported. Fish: sardines from Banyuwangi, East Java.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| KnowTheChain | Problem found | Parent Kraft Heinz scored 8 out of 100 and ranked 27th of 45 in the 2026 KnowTheChain food and beverage benchmark; it publishes no first-tier supplier list. View |
| UK Modern Slavery Statement Registry | Listed | Kraft Heinz publishes a group-wide UK modern slavery statement (2024 period); it does not mention seafood or Indonesia. View |
| US Department of Labor goods lists | Listed | The US Department of Labor lists seafood from Indonesia, the Philippines, Taiwan, China and Thailand as produced with child or forced labour. View |
Sources and actions
Sources 9
Show all 9 sources
- 2026 KnowTheChain Food and Beverage Scorecard: Kraft Heinz · search the archive · Score 8/100, rank 27 of 45; no first-tier supplier list
- Kraft Heinz Form 10-K FY2025 · search the archive · ABC is a Kraft Heinz trademark in Emerging Markets; separation into two companies paused in February 2026
- US Department of Labor fishing fact sheet · search the archive · Seafood from Indonesia listed as produced with child or forced labour
- PT Heinz ABC tarik ikan kaleng mengandung cacing (Republika, March 2018) · search the archive · PT Heinz ABC Indonesia makes ABC canned mackerel, described as local Indonesian products
- Sejarah berdirinya Grup ABC dan Heinz ABC Indonesia (IDX Channel, 2022) · search the archive · H.J. Heinz took 65% of ABC Central Food Industry in 1999; Heinz ABC Indonesia is a Kraft Heinz affiliate
- PT Heinz ABC Indonesia Pasuruan plant (UPN Veteran Jawa Timur internship report) · search the archive · Heinz ABC factories in Daan Mogot, Pasuruan and Karawang make soy sauce, sambal, syrup, tomato sauce and drinks
- Thesis on PT Blambangan Foodpackers Indonesia (Universitas Jember, 2015) · search the archive · PT Blambangan Foodpackers Indonesia in Muncar, Banyuwangi produced ABC-brand sardines
- Sarden kaleng enak Indonesia (ProductNation) · search the archive · ABC sardines use fish from Banyuwangi, East Java
- Kraft Heinz Modern Slavery Statement 2024 (UK) · search the archive · Group-wide statement; risk commodities listed exclude seafood
Company details
- Headquarters
- Indonesia
- Last researched
- 23 October 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is ABC Sardines ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/abc-sardines, last researched 23 October 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
Other canned and pouched fish brands
Nothing we've rated in canned and pouched fish is better than Lacks transparency yet.
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent ABC Sardines.