“In 2013, 19% of all potential forced labour victims came from the food industry or agricultural sector,” Bradley told our sister title Food Manufacture magazine. “However, slavery’s hidden nature means the actual numbers are likely to be higher.”
The UK’s £97bn food and drink manufacturing sector was a prime target for illegal gangmasters looking to exploit workers, Bradley warned.
‘Suspicious circumstances’
“Employers need to be aware of the signs so they can spot potential victims of slavery. The signs may be physical, such as withdrawn behaviour or untreated injuries, or there might be other suspicious circumstances.”
Bradley’s remarks followed the launch of the Home Office’s Modern Slavery campaign earlier this year to combat slave labour in the UK. The campaign will now focus on helping specific industries, such as food and drink, to spot the signs of slavery.
Transferring the Gangmasters Licensing Authority (GLA), which authorises and monitors labour providers, into the Home Office in April this year had allowed the GLA to collaborate more effectively with other law enforcement agencies dealing with serious and organised crime, claimed Bradley.
But, despite government efforts to crack down on modern slavery with the Modern Slavery Bill – which was introduced to the House of Commons on June 10 – the Labour Party and the Association of Labour Providers have criticised it.
Called on the government
They have called on the government to step up its safeguards as some companies still had slavery in their supply chains.
Criticism of the Bill followed claims in June this year that Tesco, Walmart, Costco and Carrefour were selling prawns produced by Thai firm CP Foods, which allegedly sourced some products from suppliers that used slave labour.
“The Modern Slavery Bill doesn't go far enough to address this and we will be pushing for changes to ensure companies are more accountable for the actions of those in their supply chain,” Yvette Cooper, the shadow home secretary, said in October.