The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has added the Shandong Meijia Group to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) Entity List, effectively banning imports from the company.
Shandong Meijia, also known as the Rizhao Meijia Group, is based in Shandong province, China, and sells a number of different seafood products. Shandong Meijia subsidiaries Rizhao Meijia Aquatic Foodstuff and Rizhao Meijia Keyuan Food Co. are also both active exporters of Argentine red shrimp to the U.S. and Canada, according to the Southern Shrimp Alliance (SSA).
According to the DHS, credible evidence indicates that the company participated in government-sponsored labor transfer programs that moved people from the Xinxiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, including Uyghurs, out of the region to its factories in Shandong.
The move came alongside DHS actions taken against two other companies in the footwear and aluminum sectors.
“We have shown again through today’s enforcement actions that the United States is taking concrete steps to keep goods made with forced labor out of U.S. supply chains,” DHS Undersecretary for Policy Robert Silvers said in a release. “It is imperative for companies to conduct due diligence and know where their products are coming from.”
Multiple different reports have linked the presence of Uyghur labor to Shandong Meijia Group’s supply chain. A report published in 2022 by risk analysis and compliance advisory firm Kharon showed that Shandong Meijia accepted workers through the Uyghur labor-transfer program. Another report published by the Outlaw Ocean Project in October 2023 also showcased evidence of the use of Uyghur labor at several seafood firms in China – including Shandong Meijia.
Under the UFLPA, goods found to be processed using Uyghur labor are not allowed to be ...
