TUF becomes first Thai food producer to join Global Compact
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Thai Union Frozen Products (TUF), Thailand's leading seafood producer and exporter, has joined the United Nations' Global Compact, an initiative that encourages businesses worldwide to adopt sustainable and socially responsible policies.
“By joining the UN Global Compact, we are showing our commitment to its 10 internationally recognised policies and standards of sound business practices in the areas of human rights, labour standards, environmental practice and anti-corruption,” TUF president Thiraphong Chansiri said.
“When TUF was founded in 1988 we made economic, social and environmental practices part of our vision to be a sustainable company, and that commitment continues today as we expand across the globe. Living up to these commitments through the UN Global Compact will ensure that TUF, and all its global brands and businesses, remains a reliable provider of safe and quality seafood products, a valuable investment for our shareholders, a dedicated corporate citizen in our communities and, most important, an employer of choice for our global workforce of more than 32,000 people.”
According to Dr Wit Soontaranun, TUF’s director of sustainability, the company has been improving its brands and subsidiaries in the United States and Europe to establish high standards for its workplace codes of conduct to be applied to all its global operations.
“We have been working with our colleagues at Chicken of the Sea in the US and MW Brands in Europe to adopt international best practices into our labour frameworks that will help us fulfil expectations of various stakeholders internally and externally across multiple locations.”
The most recent example of TUF’s stated commitment to responsible business practices is its collaboration with the Labour Rights Promotion Network and the local government of Samut Sakhon to establish the first TUF Care Centre in the province. TUF has committed an investment of Bt10 million to the management of the Care Centre programme, which will provide children in the area equal access to education.
“The TUF Care Centre is a great example of TUF’s partnerships with local organisations in order to provide services and facilities that help promote and protect human rights throughout our supply chain and across the country,” Wit said.
TUF is regarded as the world’s largest producer of shelf-stable tuna products and is ranked among the largest seafood producers in the world, with annual sales exceeding Bt100 billion and a global workforce of more than 32,000. Its brand portfolio includes well-known international brands Chicken of the Sea, John West, Petit Navire, Parmentier, Mareblu and Century, as well as leading Thai brands Sealect, Fisho and Bellotta.
