The Lenten season brings about an increase in seafood consumption as many Catholics abstain from meat on Fridays. This increases not only the demand for seafood, but also the demand for human trafficking.
The seafood industry always ranks high on lists of industries where modern day slavery takes place. The fishermen and women who catch the fish and other seafood are often forced into that “job.” But if you thought the inhumane treatment of persons ended there, you’d be wrong. Rather, throughout the entire process–catching, processing, and shipping–human trafficking is present.
This stigma around slavery in the seafood industry has forced companies, such as Red Lobster, to launch “sustainable seafood campaigns” in which they reveal the origin of each catch.
What can you do? Know where your seafood is coming from! If the restaurant, wholesaler, or retailer does not have the information readily available to you, there’s a chance their process could involve trafficking. You can find more tips on how to stop human trafficking in the seafood industry here.
So, next time, before you buy your seafood of choice, ask yourself if you know where it came from. You can help put an end to modern day slavery!
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