Pescanova
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 23 October 2026 · 10 sources
Spanish frozen fish, prawn and seafood brand of the Nueva Pescanova Group.
Pescanova can't show that the workers who make its products in India and Ecuador earn a living wage, which workers there are very unlikely to.
Also worth knowing
It has no full independent audit.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 1 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has 3 red flags: no evidence of a living wage, a hidden, unaudited supply chain in high-risk countries 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 India and Ecuador, 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 3
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
- Red flag: Hidden supply chain, mostly in countries with poor worker rights
- 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 2 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
Pescanova names some of the countries it makes in: Spain, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Namibia, Peru, Argentina, India and Ireland. The rest is shown as where fish and seafood are usually processed.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| India | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | High |
| Ecuador | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| Spain | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| Nicaragua | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| Guatemala | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| Namibia | Regular violations | Not rated | Low |
| Peru | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| Argentina | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| Ireland | Strong protections | About a living wage | Low |
| 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 |
| IndonesiaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| AustraliaUsual for the industry | Strong protections | About a living wage | Low |
| 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 Pescanova processes in its own plants in Spain, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Namibia, Peru, Argentina, India (Abad Overseas) and Ireland, farms shrimp in Ecuador and Nicaragua and runs over 60 of its own vessels; it also buys from outside suppliers under a supplier charter. It says its farms are fully certified but names no scheme, and publishes no vessel list. Its seven Namibian vessels hold the FISH Standard for Crew after independent audits, but the rest of its fleet and suppliers have no crew checks reported. Fishing grounds: Namibia, Argentina, Angola, Mozambique.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| News reporting and NGO investigations | Listed | Ranked first among fishing companies and second of 30 seafood companies in the World Benchmarking Alliance's 2023 Seafood Stewardship Index. View |
| US Department of Labor goods lists | Listed | The US Department of Labor lists seafood from Nicaragua and Peru, where Pescanova has processing plants, as produced with child or forced labour. View |
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.
- In August 2022 the Namibian seamen's union Nasawu said workers at Pescanova's Namibian subsidiary NovaNam earned N$20.11 an hour, the lowest in the fishing sector, and felt unable to strike; NovaNam's CEO said its pay was market-related (The Namibian, 2022). NovaNam and Nasawu signed a wage deal in September 2025 with 6% yearly rises to 2027 (New Era, 2025). Source
Sources and actions
Sources 10
Show all 10 sources
- Nueva Pescanova (World Benchmarking Alliance Seafood Stewardship Index) · search the archive · Subsidiaries in 18 countries; ranked 5th of 30 on human rights and working conditions
- Nueva Pescanova (Outlaw Ocean Project, Food for Feed) · search the archive · Company says direct suppliers follow its Supplier Ethical and Social Charter and hold third-party certifications; Promarisco supplies Pescanova Espana
- Seafood fact sheet: child labor and forced labor in seafood production (US Department of Labor, ILAB) · search the archive · Lists 20 countries or areas with documented child or forced labour in seafood production, including Thailand, the Philippines, Nicaragua and Peru
- Grupo Nueva Pescanova, la empresa espanola de productos del mar mas sostenible, segun un ranking (Bolsamania, April 2024) · search the archive · First fishing company and second overall of 30 in the 2023 Seafood Stewardship Index
- Pescanova's fleet in Namibia renews its FISH Standard for Crew certification (WeAreAquaculture, March 2026) · search the archive · NovaNam's seven vessels renewed FISH Standard for Crew after an independent audit of fleet and crew; first certified 2022
- Progress report on sustainability commitments 2025 (Pescanova, via SustainabilityReports) · search the archive · Aquaculture production reported 100% certified; 92% of own fleet catches have sustainability evidence
- Union claims fisheries ministry 'captured' by Spanish (The Namibian, August 2022) · search the archive · Nasawu says NovaNam workers earn N$20.11 an hour, lowest in the sector; NovaNam CEO disputes this
Published by Pescanova or its owner
- We process (Nueva Pescanova) · search the archive · 15 processing plants: Nicaragua, Guatemala, Ecuador, Argentina, India (Abad Overseas), Spain (six), Ireland (Eiranova), Namibia (two), Peru
- We farm (Nueva Pescanova) · search the archive · Shrimp farms of Camanica (Nicaragua) and Promarisco (Ecuador), turbot farms in Spain; farms and plants said to be certified, scheme not named
- Pescanova press dossier (August 2022) · search the archive · 17 plants in 10 countries, over 60 own vessels, fishing in Namibia, Mozambique, Angola, Argentina; close to 12,000 staff; sold in 80 countries, leader in Spain and Portugal
Company details
- Owned by
- Nueva Pescanova Group
- Headquarters
- Spain
- Employees
- About 12,000
- Last researched
- 23 October 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Pescanova ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/pescanova, last researched 23 October 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
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