Mowi
Harm on record. Has recent confirmed harm to workers that it hasn't put right.
Last researched 23 October 2026 · 11 sources
Norwegian salmon farming company selling fresh and smoked Mowi-brand salmon.
In 2026, two workers died in accidents at Mowi's Chilean salmon farm and hatchery.
Also worth knowing
There's no public record of Mowi putting this right.
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Why it's graded Harm on record
- Not met: Meets 2 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has 5 red flags: no evidence of a living wage, clear breaches of labour conditions, unaudited production in high-risk countries, a failing or very low rating (KnowTheChain 2/100 in 2026) and a problem with pay, rights or safety with no fix shown. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
- Holds the grade back: It's Harm on record because of a serious confirmed problem from the last 5 years with no public record of it being put right: deadly safety failure, last recorded in 2026.
Good requirements 2 of 6
- Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
- Not met: Respects worker rightsA confirmed problem counts against it: deadly safety failure, last recorded in 2026
- 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
- Met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that listMakes its products in its own factories
- Not met: Traces its catch to the boat or farm and has crews' or farm workers' conditions checked independently
Red flags 5
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wageShown to explain the grade. It isn't one of the 3 red flags that set it.
- Red flag: Clear breaches of labour conditions
- Red flag: Made partly in countries with poor worker rights, without a full independent audit of its supply chain
- Red flag: Failing or very low score on an independent rating: KnowTheChain 2/100 (2026)
- Red flag: A confirmed problem with pay, rights or safety not shown to be put rightShown to explain the grade. It isn't one of the 3 red flags that set it.
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Where it's made
From Mowi's own disclosure: it makes its products in its own factories. Its list covers only part of its range. The rest is shown as where fish and seafood are usually processed.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| Vietnam | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| ThailandUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| Norway | Strong protections | About a living wage | Low |
| United Kingdom | Regular violations | Close to a living wage | Low |
| Ireland | Strong protections | About a living wage | Low |
| Canada | Regular violations | About a living wage | Low |
| Poland | Regular violations | Close to a living wage | Moderate |
| France | Regular violations | About a living wage | Low |
| Netherlands | Strong protections | About a living wage | Low |
| United States | Systematic violations | Below a living wage | Low |
| Türkiye | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Very high |
| Japan | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| 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 |
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.
- Owns or runs its own production
- Traces most of its fish and seafood to named fishing boats or farms
- Modern slavery statement
- It traces some of its catch or holds environmental labels such as MSC, ASC or BAP, but doesn't show both that its catch is traced to the boat or farm and that crews' or farm workers' conditions are checked independently.
Research notes Mowi farms its own salmon in Norway, Scotland, Ireland, Canada, Chile, the Faroe Islands and Iceland, and processes it in its own plants in Poland, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Scotland, Turkey, the US, Canada, Japan, South Korea, China and Vietnam. About half its farm sites were ASC certified in 2021. No independent checks of farm or plant workers' conditions are published. In Scotland, about 300 of the 1,078 workers at its Rosyth plant were agency staff in 2025, and a union says Mowi will not recognise it.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| KnowTheChain | Problem found | Scored 2 out of 100 in the 2026 KnowTheChain food and beverage benchmark, ranked 39th of 45, with zero on recruitment, worker voice, monitoring and remedy. View |
| UK Modern Slavery Statement Registry | Listed | Mowi Scotland and Mowi Consumer Products UK publish a joint 2025 UK modern slavery statement; it reports no incidents and flags agency labour as the main risk. View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Listed | Company profile lists no allegations or response requests; it shows a 2023 KnowTheChain food and beverage score of 5 out of 100. 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? |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Two workers died at Mowi Chile operations in 2026, a contract diver at its Bhutan 7 farm in July and an employee at a hatchery in August, after a contractor was crushed by a forklift at its Puerto Montt plant in 2020 (Fish Farming Expert, IntraFish, 2026). Source · archived copy | Not knownMowi Chile expressed regret, said it was supporting the families and cooperating with the authorities' investigations; no findings or changes reported yet. |
Unconfirmed reports
Credible reports that haven't been confirmed by a regulator, completed investigation or the company. They're shown for your information and don't affect the grade.
- A 2025 report by the BFAWU union on Mowi's Rosyth processing plant in Scotland, based on worker testimony, described time-limited toilet breaks, cold working areas, repetitive-strain risks and sick pay withdrawn after workplace injuries, and said Mowi refused to meet the union (BFAWU submission to the Scottish Parliament). Source
Sources and actions
Sources 11
Show all 11 sources
- 2026 KnowTheChain Food and Beverage Scorecard: Mowi ASA · search the archive · Score 2/100, rank 39 of 45; zero on recruitment, worker voice, monitoring and remedy
- Mowi ASA company profile (Business & Human Rights Resource Centre) · search the archive · No allegations listed; KnowTheChain 2023 score 5/100
- Worker crushed to death by forklift at Mowi processing plant (Salmon Business, 2020) · search the archive · Contractor killed by an overturned forklift at Mowi's Puerto Montt plant in February 2020
- Diver dies at Mowi salmon farm in Chile (Fish Farming Expert, 2026) · archived copy · Contract diver died at Mowi Chile's Bhutan 7 farm in July 2026; prosecutors and maritime authority investigating; Mowi cooperating
- Mowi Chile reports death of employee at fish hatchery (IntraFish, 2026) · search the archive · Employee died at a Mowi Chile hatchery in August 2026; under investigation by authorities
- BFAWU submission on salmon farming to the Scottish Parliament Rural Affairs and Islands Committee · search the archive · Union report on Rosyth plant: limited toilet breaks, cold, manual handling injuries, sick pay withdrawn; Mowi rejected meeting requests
- Motion S6M-18096: On the Line, worker treatment at Mowi Rosyth (Scottish Parliament, 2025) · search the archive · June 2025 motion noting the BFAWU report on health and safety at Mowi Rosyth and urging Mowi to meet the union
- Mowi's treatment of Scottish workers under scrutiny by trade union (WeAreAquaculture, 2024) · search the archive · Union recognition dispute at Rosyth; Mowi says it supports the right to join a union but the membership threshold is not met
Published by Mowi or its owner
- Mowi global presence · search the archive · Farms in Norway, Scotland, Ireland, Faroes, Chile, Canada; plants in Poland, Belgium, France, Germany, Netherlands, Scotland, Turkey, Canada, US, Japan, Korea, China, Vietnam; none in Australia
- Mowi UK Modern Slavery Act Transparency Statement 2025 · search the archive · 48 own farms and own plants in Scotland; Rosyth 781 employees and 297 agency workers; group over 11,700 staff; agency labour a key risk; no incidents
- Mowi sustainability certifications · search the archive · 133 farm sites, 50% of all Mowi farm sites, ASC certified at end of 2021
Company details
- Headquarters
- Norway
- Employees
- About 11,700
- Last researched
- 23 October 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Mowi ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/mowi, last researched 23 October 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Harm on record means
Better-graded salmon and farmed fish
New Zealand King SalmonMissing: a traced catch with crews or farm workers checked · Fish & seafoodFarmed king salmonPays or is working towards a living wage, with gaps still to close.On TrackPartly verifiedPetunaMissing: a traced catch with crews or farm workers checked · Fish & seafoodFarmed Tasmanian ocean trout and salmonPays or is working towards a living wage, with gaps still to close.On TrackPartly verified
No salmon and farmed fish brand selling new goods is Good yet. These are the strongest so far.
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Mowi.