Seafood Task Force Leads Industry-Wide Push for Social Accountability & Traceability in India’s Shrimp Supply Chain
Training sessions and action planning to strengthen labor conditions and traceability across the shrimp supply chain
Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India
April 30, 2026
The Seafood Task Force (STF) and the Marine Products Exports Development Authority (MPEDA) continue to strengthen their partnership following a series of workshops in April, which saw over 50 participants from across India's shrimp sector come together to strengthen capacity building efforts and accelerate improvements in social accountability and traceability from vessel to plate.
The event brought together STF buyer and supplier members and their associated fishmeal plants, alongside representatives from MPEDA, the National Centre for Sustainable Aquaculture (NaCSA), the Network for Fish Quality Management and Sustainable Fishing (NETFISH), the Trawl Boat Association President for Udupi district in Karnataka, and the STF Executive Team.
On April 6-7, expert-led training sessions were delivered to 50 trainees. The curriculum focused on three core areas: awareness of the STF Social Code of Conduct; developing and maintaining systems for recording working hours and calculating; and processing wage and benefit payments at shrimp farms and upgrading training delivery skills. Sessions combined practical instruction with interactive group work and role-play exercises, equipping trainers with the knowledge and confidence to cascade learning effectively to management teams across processors, feed mills, fishmeal plants, and farms within STF members’ supply chains, as well as to factories and farms managed under MPEDA, NaCSA, and NETFISH. The program represents a significant step in driving industry-wide improvements in shrimp social accountability across India.
The capacity-building program was followed on April 8 by the STF India Working Group meeting, which convened 35 representatives. Working together with the STF Executive Team, participants conducted root-cause analyses of social issues on fishing vessels and traceability gaps at farms and factories. These issues were prioritized for improvement by buyer and supplier members from the baseline assessment findings published earlier this year. Based on the root causes, the group also developed a structured action plan to systematically address these challenges.
The Vijayawada events were the latest in a series of ongoing STF activities aimed at supporting improvements across India's shrimp supply chain, from vessel to plate, to provide risk assurance for its members. Building on the STF’s 2024 Mumbai event, which united buyer members, MPEDA and India’s public and private sectors. Followed by last year’s launch of the India Working Group in Visakhapatnam and the STF annual summit in Bangkok.
STF Chief Executive Officer, Martin Thurley said:
"Our work in Vijayawada marks further progress in our India program. Training 50 trainers, from current STF members to our MPEDA partners, means that we are not just reaching individual sites but also building the sustained capacity needed to drive lasting change across hundreds of farms, factories and fishing vessels. The action plan developed at the working group meeting gives us a clear step-by-step roadmap to address root causes of social issues on fishing vessels and close the traceability gaps we continue to identify. India is central to the global shrimp supply chain, and we remain absolutely committed to working with our members, MPEDA and industry partners to ensure it meets the highest standards of social accountability."
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About the Seafood Task Force:
The Seafood Task Force (STF) was established in 2014 to restore global confidence to trade, following concerns about social and environmental abuse in global tuna and shrimp supply chains. It is made up of over 50 major retailers, brands, food service companies and their supply chain partners.
The STF drives supply chain oversight at scale, pioneering a pro-competitive approach that makes it easier for its members to meet international standards and growing due diligence requirements.
The STF is a US-based, not-for-profit trade association established for the seafood industry by the seafood industry. Its vision is a future where its members’ seafood supply chains are fully traceable, free from the risk of human rights violations and free from environmental degradation.
For more information: https://seafoodtaskforce.global/