Goods produced with forced labour could be for sale in Finnish supermarkets and restaurants. Secrecy over detailed imports data makes it harder to intervene in situations of labour exploitation in global supply chains of companies.

NGOs in eleven European countries have sent an information request to their national Customs regarding the imports to their country of products made by Natural Fruit, a company suspected of abusing their workers. In Finland, the information request was signed by Finnwatch, Pro Ethical Trade, Consumers' Union of Finland and Transparency International Finland.

In a report published in 2013, Finnwatch exposed serious human rights violations at a Natural Fruit pineapple processing plant in Prachuap Khiri Khan province in Thailand. The research findings pointed towards forced labour and even human trafficking.

After the publication of the report, Natural Fruit has refused independent third-party social audits to its factory. It is therefore impossible to know if the working conditions there have been significantly improved.

– Consumers have the right to know where, by whom and under what conditions the products that they want to buy have been made. Nobody wants to buy products made by forced labour, said Anu Kultalahti, a researcher at Finnwatch.

– Detailed information about foreign trade that would enable connecting an importing company to a producer suspected of human rights violations are currently not public information. As such, consumers and NGOs depend on information provided by companies themselves regarding their supply chains.

The Consumer Protection Act forbids giving out misleading information if it distorts or is likely to distort the economic behaviour with regard to a product of the average consumer.

– According to the law, it is just as misleading to give out incorrect information about a product as it is to omit pertinent information, including information that in the production of a product international treaties or national laws have been violated, said Tuula Sario, senior legal counsel with the Consumers' Union of Finland.

– In line with the sustainable development goals, Finland is committed to guarantee the freedom of information that the citizens needs in order to assess whether human rights are being realised. As a keeper of such information, the Customs' have a responsibility to advance its transparency, noted Tommi Niinimäki, Chair of Transparency International Finland.

The CEO of Natural Fruit has previously stated that the volume of their international sales has gone up since the publication of the Finnwatch report.

– Of the Finnish companies S Group, Kesko, Tuko Logistics and VIP-Juicemaker have told us that the have already stopped purchases from Natural Fruit. However, without detailed Customs' information regarding imports it is impossible to establish whether Natural Fruit products are still being marketed in Finland by a company that has not given out details about their supply chains as openly, Kultalahti reminded.

Following the publication of the Finnwatch report, Natural Fruit has filed altogether four criminal and civil cases in Thailand against a British migrant workers' rights defender Andy Hall who coordinated field research for the report. The trial in the most serious of the four cases is currently ongoing in Bangkok.

The hearings in the case will continue until the end of July. In July, the executive director of Finnwatch Sonja Vartiala and a representative from the S Group will testify for the defence. A verdict is expected in September.

– Any company still making purchases from Natural Fruit should use its leverage to pressure Natural Fruit to allow independent third-party social audits at its processing plant and to stop their judicial harassment of Andy Hall, said Kultalahti.

Natural Fruit is just one example of companies that exploit their workers. According to the International Labour Organization, 21 million people are victims of forced labour; almost 19 million of them are exploited by private individuals or enterprises.

– Transparency over supply chains is key to addressing labour exploitation, establishing responsibility for abuses and delivering justice to the victims, said Anna Ylä-Anttila, acting executive director of Pro Ethical Trade.

Organisations' information request to the Customs (in Finnish) is available here >>

Contact details:

Anu Kultalahti, researcher, Finnwatch +358447193096, anu.kultalahti(a)finnwatch.org

Anna Ylä-Anttila, acting executive director, Pro Ethical Trade, +358503495230, anna.yla-anttila(a)eetti.fi

Tuula Sario, senior legal counsel, Consumers' Union of Finland, +358400721252, tuula.sario(a)kuluttajaliitto.fi

Tommi Niinimäki, chair, Transparency International Finland, +358405259159, tommi.niinimaki(a)transparency.fi

Update 15 June: Customs turns down organisations' request