Maruha Nichiro
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 23 October 2026 · 9 sources
Japanese seafood group, renamed Umios in 2026, selling canned and frozen fish.
Maruha Nichiro's supply chain was linked to forced labour in 2020, which it didn't act on, and it has no full independent audit.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 0 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, forced or child labour 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: the most serious problem on its record (forced labour link, last recorded in 2020) is more than 5 years old.
- 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 0 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 Thailand and China, 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
- Not 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: Forced, slave or child labour found in or linked to its supply chain
- 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
Maruha Nichiro says it makes products in Thailand. Product labels show Japan. Press and retailer reports name China. The rest is shown as where fish and seafood are usually processed.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thailand | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| China | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| Japan | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| VietnamUsual for the industry | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| IndonesiaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | 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.
- Makes part of its range in its own factories
- 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 Maruha Nichiro, renamed Umios in March 2026, makes canned and frozen seafood at its own plants in Japan and at Thai subsidiaries (KF Foods, the SEAPAC cannery, Kingfisher Holdings), has an affiliate in Yantai, China, and buys from processors it does not name. Most of its tuna comes from outside suppliers on boats flagged in nine countries; supplier checks are mainly self-assessment surveys, with a grievance channel run with Issara Institute for vessel workers at SEAPAC. It publishes no supplier or vessel list and reports no independent crew checks. Only some tuna is MSC certified. It also owns Alaskan processors and half of Austral Fisheries.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| US forced-labour import bans (UFLPA Entity List, CBP Withhold Release Orders) | Problem found | In June 2024 the US added Shandong Meijia Group, a Chinese supplier of Maruha Nichiro, to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List, banning its imports. View |
| KnowTheChain | Not covered | Maruha Nichiro (Umios) is not among the 45 companies in the 2026 KnowTheChain food and beverage benchmark. View |
| US Department of Labor goods lists | Listed | The US Department of Labor lists seafood from China, Thailand, Taiwan and the Philippines as produced with child or forced labour. View |
Confirmed issues 1
Only confirmed problems are listed, and old ones drop off after 10 to 15 years. A problem the company has fully put right no longer counts against it, and nor does one it finds and is fixing itself. How problems are counted
| Last recorded | What happened | Made amends? |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Link through a supplierThe Outlaw Ocean Project reported in 2023 that Shandong Meijia, a Chinese seafood processor supplying Maruha Nichiro, took in workers from Xinjiang through state labour transfers, with Chinese media showing arrivals in 2020; in 2024 the US added Meijia to its Uyghur forced labour entity list. Source · search the archive | NoIt relied on the supplier's own survey answers, had done no on-site audit and said it would keep watch; no halt to purchases was reported. |
Sources and actions
Sources 9
Show all 9 sources
- Maruha Nichiro response to questionnaire on human rights due diligence in the fisheries industry (Human Rights Now, June 2025) · search the archive · Most tuna from outside suppliers; vessel flags; supplier self-assessment surveys; supplier list not public; Taiyo A&F MSC for some tuna; Issara grievance channel at Thai subsidiary SEAPAC
- Outlaw Ocean Project correspondence with Maruha Nichiro Group (2023-24) · search the archive · Supplier Shandong Meijia received Xinjiang workers via labour transfers (arrivals Feb 2020); Maruha relied on its supplier survey, had no on-site audit, would keep watch
- 2026 KnowTheChain Food and Beverage Benchmark (Business & Human Rights Resource Centre) · search the archive · 45 companies assessed; Maruha Nichiro not included
- US bans imports from Chinese seafood company linked to Uyghur labor (SeafoodSource, June 2024) · search the archive · Shandong Meijia Group added to the UFLPA Entity List for taking part in Xinjiang labour transfers
- Maruha Nichiro to change name (Just Food) · search the archive · Maruha Nichiro to rename itself Umios
- Japan's Umios invests in Thailand's Pataya Food Industries (Just Food, Sept 2026) · search the archive · Group firm Kingfisher Holdings takes a 25.1% stake in Thai canned seafood maker PFI
- Umios Corporation annual securities report FY2026 (EDINET text) · search the archive · 12,479 employees; Thai processed-food subsidiaries KF Foods, Southeast Asian Packaging and Canning, Kingfisher Holdings; Yantai affiliate; Westward Seafoods; Austral Fisheries 50%
- Maruha Nichiro Tuna Flake 80g x 18 (Costco Taiwan) · search the archive · Canned tuna origin: Japan
- Maruha Nichiro Frozen Japanese Oysters 1kg (Umall) · search the archive · Sold online in Australia by Umall (Sydney delivery); Product of Japan
Company details
- Headquarters
- Japan
- Employees
- About 12,479
- Last researched
- 23 October 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Maruha Nichiro ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/maruha-nichiro, last researched 23 October 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Maruha Nichiro.