The Seafood Ethics Common Language Group | Seafish
Jump to:

The Seafood Ethics Common Language Group

A group which brings people together to find out more about ethical sourcing and issues concerning labour and worker welfare.



The Seafood Ethics Common Language Group (SECLG) provides a safe meeting space to discuss the key ethical issues faced by the international seafood industry. The group looks at social welfare issues that affect the UK seafood supply chain, whether in the UK or seafood imported into the UK. This covers human trafficking, labour abuses, child labour, debt bondage, forced labour, migrant workers, and modern slavery. It is an opportunity to share new ideas or best practice case studies from around the world. 
 
The group is led by industry and we take responsibility for running the SECLG. The Group has met since 2014. The SECLG brings together seafood industry representatives from major supermarket chains, smaller retailers, processors, foodservice and the catching sector.  Other people who attend are not-for-profit voluntary groups, welfare charities, consumer groups, government and social research scientists. 

SECLG meetings

There are generally three meetings a year. We currently run a mix of in-person and short online SECLG sessions. 

Next meeting

A new calendar of SECLG events for 2026/2027 is being developed and more information will be shared soon.

Recent meetings

Presentations from previous meetings, where we have author consent, are available upon request by emailing issuesgroups@seafish.co.uk. 

SECLG online, ‘Advancing Ethical Practices in UK Fisheries’ (29 January 2026) 

  • Update on the impact of recent legislation and shifting practice as a UK-based recruitment agency, Mike Park, SWFPA Crew Services 
  • Managing allegations of welfare concern in the fishing industry and how ILO c188 ratification impacts our operations, Shaun Rogers, MCA 
  • Introduction to new ILO Guidelines on Fair Labour Market Services for Migrant Fishers and what this means for UK industry, Chris Williams, ITF 

SECLG in-person, ‘Delivering Human Rights Assurances in the Seafood Industry’ (23 October 2025)

Morning session: Strengthening current practice in the seafood industry 

  • Current landscape of ethical assurance in seafood and supply chains, and the key issues faced, Brett Dodge, Ergon Associates 
  • UK and international tools and methodologies supporting human rights due diligence, Paul Chalmers, Sedex 
  • Reflecting on systems that connect social and environmental processes, using learning from other industries, Suzy Fogg, ISEAL Alliance 
  • Challenges and opportunities as a retailer in providing human rights assurances, Heather Webb, Co-op  
  • Are human rights approaches robust?, Ashley Aarons, Oxfam 

Afternoon session: Informing human rights assessments: regulatory and policy updates 

  • Introducing the Fair Work Agency and future plans, Samantha Ireland, GLAA 
  • Update on UK marine monitoring observations, Andy Vidamour, Border Force 
  • Evolution of EU CSDDD over the last year and implications for industry, David Rousseau and Priyanka Kanani, Impactt 
  • The impact of recent legislative updates on the ground, Marc Evans, The Fisherman’s Mission 

Presentations from recent SECLG online and in person meetings are available upon request by emailing issuesgroups@seafish.co.uk. 

SECLG newsletters

We send regular emails with a round up of stories, research and projects in the seafood industry. Subscribe to receive our updates and meeting details.

Terms of Reference and archive

  • We have archived presentations from past SECLG meetings. These are available upon request by emailing issuesgroups@seafish.co.uk.

Contacts

For further information, please contact: issuesgroups@seafish.co.uk.

Back to top