Three Lady Cooks
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 23 October 2026 · 7 sources
Thai canned sardine and mackerel brand made by Royal Foods.
There's no proof Three Lady Cooks pays more than the legal minimum, which in Thailand is below a living wage, and it has no full independent audit.
Other canned and pouched fish brands
Nothing we've rated in canned and pouched fish is better than Lacks transparency yet.
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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 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: 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
Product labels show Thailand. Press and retailer reports name Vietnam. 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 |
| Vietnam | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| ChinaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | 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.
- 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 Three Lady Cooks is Thailand's top canned fish brand, owned by Royal Foods, which also grows tomatoes and makes its own sauces and packaging; about 20% of sales are exported and the brand is reported to lead the Vietnamese market. Cans sold abroad are labelled Product of Thailand, and Royal Foods has opened canneries in Vietnam (Tien Giang and Nghe An). The company publishes no fish sources, vessel or plant list, certifications, labour policy or checks on crews or cannery workers, in a country the US lists for forced labour in seafood.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| US Department of Labor goods lists | Listed | The US Department of Labor lists seafood from Thailand as produced with child or forced labour. View |
Sources and actions
Sources 7
Show all 7 sources
- 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
- Canned fish market case study: Three Lady Cooks, Super C Chef, Roza (Marketeer, July 2023) · search the archive · Three Lady Cooks is owned by Royal Foods Co., Ltd., ranks first in Thai canned fish, has integrated tomato, sauce and packaging production, and holds over half the Vietnamese market
- Three Lady Cooks canned fish market leader (Prachachat, July 2019) · search the archive · Market leader in Thai canned fish with over 40% share; 80% of sales domestic, 20% overseas
- Thai company starts new joint venture cannery in Vietnam (IntraFish) · search the archive · Royal Foods, owner of Three Lady Cooks, is starting up a joint venture canned fish factory in Vietnam
- Number of canned food factories with foreign investment on the rise (B&Company, March 2015) · search the archive · Royal Foods operates a Tien Giang factory (73,000 t a year) and was building a US$25 million plant in Nghe An
- Three Lady Cooks Sardines in Tomato Sauce 155g (ARC Asian Grocer) · search the archive · Sold at ARC Asian Grocer's stall at Preston Market, Victoria, and online; labelled Product of Thailand
- Three Lady Cooks Sardines with Chili 5.29 oz (Weee!) · search the archive · Origin Thailand, Product of Thailand
Company details
- Owned by
- Royal Foods Co., Ltd. (Thailand)
- Headquarters
- Thailand
- Last researched
- 23 October 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Three Lady Cooks ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/three-lady-cooks, 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 Three Lady Cooks.