US CBP has issued a withhold release order against the Chinese squid fishing vessel Zhan Fa 7 after finding evidence of forced labour onboard. The order follows prior investigative reporting that exposed labour abuses on the vessel.
On 28 May 2025, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued a withhold release (WRO) order against the Zhan Fa 7, a Chinese-flagged commercial squid fishing vessel. This follows evidence including that obtained by NGO the Outlaw Ocean Project that seafood harvested aboard the ship was produced using forced labour. Effective immediately, CBP officers will detain all seafood imports from the Zhan Fa 7 at US ports.
The US Tariff Act of 1930 prohibits all goods produced or manufactured wholly or in part by forced labour from entering the US. This is the sixth WRO issued on a fishing vessel since 2020, and the first since August 2021.
Background
The Zhan Fa 7, operated by Rongcheng Wangdao Ocean Aquatic Products (Shandong, China), was prominently featured in The Outlaw Ocean Project’s 2023 investigative series, China: The Superpower of Seafood.
The reporting included testimony from former crew members and documented conditions onboard including:
- 15-hour workdays, six days a week
- Confiscation of identity documents such as passports
- Delayed or withheld wages
- Inadequate food, unsafe working conditions, and limited medical care
- Alleged physical abuse by senior officers
- Fatalities onboard, including the death of an Indonesian crew member, Daniel Aritonang, from complications linked to severe malnutrition
In its press release, CBP stated it had identified multiple indicators of forced labour on board the Zhan Fa 7, as defined by the International Labour Organization. These included abuse of vulnerability, isolation, confiscation of identity documents, poor working and living conditions, physical and sexual violence, and debt bondage. CBP noted that these labour abuses allowed the vessel to lower its operational costs, produce seafood below market value, undercut U.S. businesses, and gain unfair profits.
This is not the first time that a vessel investigated by the Outlaw Ocean Project has resulted in US sanctions. The US Department of Homeland Security added Shandong Meijia Group Co., Ltd., a company cited in The Outlaw Ocean Project’s investigations, to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List in June 2024.