John West Foods controversies
Controversies tied to this brand in public sources. A listing is not a finding of fault.
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2016
Criticism over tuna sustainability commitment
Greenpeace said that only approximately 2 percent of John West’s tuna was pole-and-line caught, despite the company’s 2011 commitment to use pole-and-line and fish-aggregation-device-free purse-seine methods. John West cited limited global availability of pole-and-line tuna, while Greenpeace argued that major processors and fleet owners needed to invest more heavily in sustainable supply.
2015
Tuna sourcing and traceability dispute
Greenpeace alleged that John West had not fulfilled its traceability promise because some cans produced at Thai Union facilities in Thailand were not identified by the public Can Tracker. The organization also connected the issue with labor-rights and fishing-method concerns in the regional seafood supply chain. John West said the omission resulted from a website limitation.
2008
Greenpeace sustainability ranking criticism
Greenpeace ranked John West as the least sustainable canned-tuna brand in its United Kingdom assessment and criticized the company over fishing methods, bycatch risks and the selection of fish stocks.