This Iconic Canned Tuna Brand Is In The Midst Of A Lawsuit For An Appalling Reason

San Diego-based Bumble Bee Foods is facing a lawsuit from four fishermen claiming abuse and forced labor while working on fishing boats within the company's supply chain. The lawsuit was filed on March 12, 2025, in a United States District Court in Southern California on behalf of four Indonesian villagers who worked on different fishing boats in the supply network. CNN calls the lawsuit a landmark one, as it's the first time a forced labor case has been brought against an American seafood company. Representatives for Bumble Bee have told multiple news outlets the company would not comment on the legal proceedings.

Detailed in a PDF of the filing, the four men cite different instances of physical abuse, denial of food and medical care for severe injuries, forced labor, and a form of debt bondage, in which fees and fines reduced their wages and would leave them indebted to their employers if they quit. According to the suit, volunteer investigators used a consumer sourcing feature on cans of Bumble Bee tuna called "Trace My Catch" to verify that the boats each of the plaintiffs worked on were harvesting albacore tuna for Bumble Bee. The suit not only seeks recompense for the plaintiffs, but assurance that measures will be put in place protecting other laborers on fishing boats that supply Bumble Bee with tuna.

Bumble Bee ranked as one of the worst canned tunas on store shelves, among the 14 we tried. Bumble Bee brand salmon and crab are also canned fish products you should skip. 

The lawsuit filed against Bumble Bee Foods details examples of violence, forced labor, and debt bondage the four Indonesian fishermen described enduring. Akhmad, one of the plaintiffs, received only $50 of the $300 per month salary he was supposed to receive after recruiting fees and living fees were deducted, and that his family would owe additional fees if he were to leave early. The suit claims his captain beat him and others with a metal hook, and he was given only one day off per year. Angga, another plaintiff, says he was to be paid only half the rate he signed on for (with similar hefty fees levied). He was transferred to a ship where he and other crewmen were beaten and stabbed with a needle by his captain. He never actually received any pay after he finally was able to leave. The other two plaintiffs allege equally harrowing conditions.

Forced labor is a significant issue in the U.S. food chain, according to a 2023 study in Nature. While the study excluded seafood and focused on land-based U.S. foods, it notes the complexity of global supply chains and the shadowy nature of forced labor in sustainable food systems. CNN cites several reports and studies on human rights abuses and forced labor specific to the fishing industry.

While Bumble Bee is based in San Diego, California, it was acquired in 2020 by the Taiwanese company F.C.F. Co., Ltd. following a 2019 bankruptcy filing by Bumble Bee. F.C.F. Co. owns a global supply chain specializing in tuna fishing and marketing.