Princes
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 23 October 2026 · 9 sources
UK canned tuna and fish brand of Princes Group, based in Liverpool.
There's no proof Princes pays more than the legal minimum, which in Mauritius is below a living wage, and 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, unaudited production 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 rightsSome 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
- 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: Made partly in countries with poor worker rights, without a full independent audit of 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 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
Princes names some of the countries it makes in: Mauritius. The rest is shown as where fish and seafood are usually processed.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mauritius | Regular violations | Below 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 |
| 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
- Modern slavery statement
- 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 Princes cans tuna at two plants it runs in Mauritius (about 4,100 staff), which rely partly on migrant workers from Bangladesh and India and held SA8000 certification in 2018; the packers of its salmon, sardines and mackerel are not named. All its branded tuna came from MSC-certified fisheries by 2026, and it says every can is traceable to its boat, but it publishes no vessel list. Its 2025 statement names recruitment fees in Mauritius and forced labour on Indonesian fishing vessels as top risks; it bans longlining and at-sea transhipment and is piloting worker-voice tools, but crews are not independently checked.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| UK Modern Slavery Statement Registry | Listed | Princes Group plc's statement for 2025 names recruitment fees and debt bondage risks for migrant workers at its Mauritius tuna plants, and forced labour on Indonesian fishing vessels, as priority risks. 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 February 2026 the CTSP union protested at Princes Tuna in Mauritius over health and safety, hygiene, sick-leave checks, worn-out uniforms and pay, and the labour minister said his ministry would investigate (allAfrica, 2026). Source
Sources and actions
Sources 9
Show all 9 sources
- Princes Limited modern slavery statement 2017/18 (snapshot, Business & Human Rights Resource Centre) · search the archive · Princes Tuna (Mauritius) runs two tuna processing sites, both SA8000 certified; workers recruited from India and Bangladesh; third-party finished-goods suppliers need audits
- How Princes recruits migrant workers in its Mauritius supply chain (Ethical Trading Initiative, 2017) · search the archive · Princes owns its Mauritius tuna plants; Bangladeshi migrants about a quarter of staff; steps taken against recruitment fees
- Princes achieves 100 percent MSC-certified tuna sourcing goal (SeafoodSource, Feb 2026) · search the archive · All 70 million cans of Princes branded tuna from MSC-certified fisheries; salmon, kippers and mackerel not all certified
- Princes' IPO needs to be FAD-free (Planet Tracker) · search the archive · Princes' main tuna fisheries and suppliers in the Atlantic, Indian Ocean and Pacific; most of its tuna FAD-caught
- Princes Group Retail Flyer (Hargreaves Lansdown) · search the archive · About 7,800 staff; two factories in Mauritius; core markets UK, Italy and Germany; owned by NewPrinces since 2024
- Ile Maurice: Climat tendu chez Princes Tuna (allAfrica, Feb 2026) · search the archive · CTSP union protest at Princes Tuna; complaints on safety and uniforms; labour minister opens investigation
- Ile Maurice: La tension monte entre la CTSP et Princes Tuna (allAfrica, Feb 2026) · search the archive · Union complaints on hygiene, sick-leave checks, transport safety and seniority pay at Princes Tuna's Mauritius sites
Published by Princes or its owner
- PRINCES GROUP PLC modern slavery statement summary (2026) · search the archive · 2025 statement: priority risks are migrant recruitment fees at own Mauritius tuna plants and forced labour on Indonesian fishing vessels; bans longlining and transhipment; worker-voice pilots
- Princes careers: Mauritius · search the archive · Two Princes tuna production sites in Mauritius with 4,141 colleagues; about 10 million cases a year; every can traceable to the boat it came from
Company details
- Headquarters
- United Kingdom
- Employees
- About 7,800
- Last researched
- 23 October 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Princes ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/princes, 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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