According to our second scorecard, almost every single major supermarket has been given a failing grade on ensuring the tuna in their supply chain is free of human rights abuses.
But there's one retailer that stands out for its ability to shift the tuna market: Kroger.
Kroger will likely acquire Albertsons — making it one of the biggest grocery store chains in America. After the merger, the future Kroger megachain will control a massive piece of the market and be uniquely positioned to shift the supply chain — if they want.
We need to make sure they use this power to shift the tuna supply chain!
Tell Kroger to help protect human rights abuses and sustainability at sea!
Kroger,
I'm writing to express my concern as a customer about Kroger's performance on Greenpeace USA's recently released US tuna retailer report: The High Cost of Cheap Tuna - 2nd Edition.
Kroger was one of the worst performing national US retailers, receiving 10th place out of a field of 16 national and regional supermarkets. This performance is disappointing, especially since Kroger is poised to become one of the largest grocery retailers in the US with its upcoming planned merger with Albertsons. In light of this, Kroger has an opportunity and a responsibility to lead in creating lasting change in the industry.
While I appreciate Kroger's improvement in scores since the first edition of this report, Kroger's scores are still far from meeting the passing threshold. Kroger must rise to its responsibility as one of the largest grocery retailers in the US by immediately taking the following steps to prevent environmental harm and human rights & labor abuse in its supply chain:
- Stop selling canned tuna from brands such as Bumble Bee that have been linked to human rights abuses at sea
- Enhance traceability and transparency efforts in its supply chain. In addition, follow Hy-Vee's lead to publicly release a full list of its tuna supplying vessels.
- Announce a public, measurable, time-bound plan to phase out transshipment at sea.
- Create a grievance mechanism that allows workers in your supply chain to lodge grievances and access remedy for harm. That grievance mechanism must be designed in line with international best practices including ensuring that workers are engaged meaningfully in all human rights due diligence processes.
These measures are critical to prevent tainted seafood from being sold in the US.
It's time for Kroger to chart a new path and show customers that it is serious about putting people and the health of our oceans at the heart of its decisions.
Sincerely,
