Campaign Get Together with MAP in Seattle - May 21

Please join Mangrove Action Project (MAP) in Seattle to learn about our exciting new campaign on imported shrimp! We are eager to share news with you about MAP, details about why imported shrimp is so destructive, and how you can be part of the campaign!

WE NEED VOLUNTEERS!

What: Shrimp Less, Think More – a consumer awareness campaign

When: Wednesday, May 21^th, 6:30pm to 9pm

Where: Spitfire* 2219 4th Ave (downtown Seattle)

Doors will open at 6:30, and the program will begin at 7pm. MAP will provide appetizers; food and drinks will also be available for purchase.

To RSVP or for more info, contact eli AT mangroveactionproject.org or (509) 951-4361.

We look forward to seeing you there!

* Spitfire is a 21+ venue…sorry! If you are under 21, please let us know. We will be doing another event for students very soon.

Bottomfeeder author to speak May 12

Montreal-based journalist Taras Grescoe’s book, Bottomfeeder: How to Eat Ethically in a World of Vanishing Seafood (Bloomsbury), based on a nine-month investigation of the aquaculture industry, is both illumination and frightening. Climate change, pollution, and unregulated practices of fishing and fish farming industries could all have dire consequences for seafood and those who consume it. Taras Grescoe shares the details and presents alternatives for those who want to continue to eat safely and sustainably. Taras Grescoe’s other books include The End of Elsewhere, Sacre Blues, and The Devil’s Picnic.

Grescoe will speak May 12 at 7:30 pm at Elliot Bay Book Co.

101 South Main Street • Seattle, Washington 98104 • 206-624-6600 • 800-962-5311

Hazel Wolf Environmental Film Festival THIS WEEKEND!

Please join us on Sunday, May 4, at 1 pm for this special screening of the short video “It’s All a Lie.” Come learn about the threats posed by shrimp farm development, and the communities fighting to protect their land and livelihoods in Northeast Brazil. Immediately following the screening there will be a question and answer period.

It’s All a Lie (10 min, UK)
In September, 2007, Environmental Justice Foundation investigators visited the northeast coast of Brazil where a proposal for a shrimp farm the size of London’s Heathrow airport would turn coastal forests into a virtual wasteland, destroying sustainable livelihoods and threatening marine habitats. The film illustrates the delusion of local residents due to false promises made by the shrimp farming industry for jobs and a better life, and shows the devastation caused to alert Caravela’s residents of the activity’s reality. (Environmental Justice Foundation, 2007)

Location: Johnson Hall, Room 175, University of Washington, Seattle

Ticket info below.

The 10th Anniversary HAZEL WOLF ENVIRONMENTAL FILM FESTIVAL is a partnership with UW Earth Initiative, the Community and Environmental Planning Program, and other UW groups.

55 environmental films and shorts over 4 days, more than a dozen visiting filmmakers, speakers and panel discussions, filmmaking workshops. Featuring new documentaries and old favorites, keynote speakers and workshops, animation, inspiration, community, and more.

Tickets available though website and Brown Paper Tickets and in person at Seattle Audubon’s Nature Shop, 8050 35th Ave NE (Open 10-5, Monday through Saturday). Advance tickets $5 - 10 for individual sessions or $60 for a full-festival pass ($40 for students). Tickets will also be available at the door, unless sold out. Volunteers needed, and receive one or more free tickets and other benefits, info, sophia@hazelfilm.org.

Schedule of films, times and ticket info at the HWEFN website.

info http://www.911media.org or http://www.hazelfilm.org/?page_id=43, info@hazelfilm.org,
or 206-624-9725

CNN Video on Alleged Worker Abuse

CNN’s Zain Verjee on the Solidarity Center’s 3-year labor investigation report suggesting Thai and Bangladeshi shrimp often come from factories that abuse workers. Includes Thai police video footage of raid on shrimp processing plant and interviews with Solidarity Center director, U.S. State Department rep, and Thai and Bangladeshi ambassadors. Time: 3min 44sec. (photo from Solidarity Center)

Click here to view video.

“If a consumer is worried about buying a can of tuna based on whether dolphins might be harmed in catching tuna, surely consumers will be concerned about the shrimp that they buy based on whether human beings are being enslaved.”

- Ambassador Mark Lagon, Dir. of Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, U.S. Department of State

Senator Landrieu Urges Embargo of Imported Shrimp

WASHINGTON — United States Senator Mary Landrieu, D-La., today sent a letter to President Bush urging him to immediately embargo imports of processed shrimp from Thailand and Bangladesh. Her concern is based on new claims that shrimp industry workers in Southeast Asia suffer gross labor abuses and unsanitary conditions that could jeopardize the health of American consumers.

“Shrimp is a $13 billion global industry with the U.S. importing over $4 billion worth,” Sen. Landrieu wrote in the letter. “As such, our country plays a critical role in driving demand. In an attempt to undercut our domestic shrimpers, processing plants in these two countries are alleged to use grossly inadequate food safety, environmental and labor standards. If these reports are true, we are jeopardizing the health and safety of Americans, and harming our own law-abiding domestic producers.”

The report was released by the Solidarity Center, and titled “The Degradation of Work: The True Cost of Shrimp.” CNN further elaborated on the sexual abuse, child labor, human trafficking and disgracefully low wages that are claimed to be commonplace conditions for shrimp industry workers in Thailand and Bangladesh.

“American consumers have the right to know if they are purchasing products made in such appalling and unsafe conditions,” the letter states. “Alone, the food safety issues are enough to embargo imports due to the health and safety concerns posed to all Americans. Those concerns, combined with the disgraceful labor conditions used to supply our market, demand an immediate prohibition against shrimp imports from these countries.”

A full copy of the letter is available here.

The True Cost of Shrimp

In the $13 billion seafood processing industry, workers pay the price for consumer affordability. This report, from the Solidarity Center’s ‘Degradation of Work’ series, uncovers pervasive worker and human rights abuses in the shrimp processing industry in Thailand and Bangladesh, such as low-wage sweatshop conditions, use of child and forced labor, and global supply chains that drive wages down and hide the exploitation of workers.

Thailand is the world’s shrimp industry leader and the No. 1 source of shrimp for the U.S., having exported $1.3 billion worth to the U.S. in 2006. Fast-rising newcomer Bangladesh exported $200 million to rank 9th on a list of U.S. sources.

Solidarity Center found that the following chains received shrimp from plants with substandard labor practices:

• Costco
• Cub Foods
• Giant
• Giant Eagle
• Harris Teeter
• IGA
• Tops Markets
• Trader Joe’s
• Wal-Mart

Download report

Upcoming Events

The campaign will be participating in many exciting events happening this spring, so mark your calendars!

Tuesday, April 29th: Panel Discussion and Slide Show about Sustainable Seafood

Seattle University, noon.

For more information, contact eli@mangroveactionproject.org

Tuesday, April 29: Eat Local Now! Annual Dinner

Ballard High School, 6-9 PM

This year, Eat Local Now! will raise awareness about farmland flooding issues in Washington. MAP will have a table with information about shrimp farming.

For more information, contact info@balleseattle.org or Derek Hoshiko at 206.330.9099

Saturday, May 3: Vancouver Spot Prawn Festival

Vancouver, BC (False Creek Fisherman’s Wharf), 12-5 pm

This festival will feature Vancouver’s top chefs preparing delicious spot prawn dishes, celebrating the arrival of the season’s first spot prawns as local fishermen return to the wharf with their catch!

With tastings and cooking demonstrations, the goals of the Spot Prawn Festival are to highlight an environmentally sound and locally sourced product as a readily available and delicious alternative to Southeast Asian tiger; to help encourage the development of Vancouver’s first day-boat fishery delivering high quality spot prawns directly to the local community; and to remind us that farmer’s markets don’t stop at the water’s edge.

Sunday, May 4: Hazel Wolf Environmental Film Festival

Johnson Hall, University of Washington, 1:00pm, room 175

Join us for this screening of It’s All a Lie (10 min, UK), a film by the Environmental Justice Foundation about the destruction caused by shrimp farming in Brazil.

Great turnout at Seattle Green Festival!

Thanks to everyone who came by the MAP table at Seattle Green Festival last weekend, where we kicked off our awareness campaign against imported shrimp! At this 2-day “party with a purpose,” we joined forces with other socially and environmentally responsible organizations and businesses to celebrate—and inspire–the movement toward a sustainable future, which is thriving in the Pacific Northwest.

Thousands of people stopped by our table, eager to learn more about the destruction caused by imported shrimp. A few people shared personal stories (about visiting mangroves during travels to Asia, and about being sickened by contaminated shrimp, for example), but most people were shocked to learn that American’s favorite seafood causes such distress on the communities and environments where shrimp farming takes place. We handed out Seafood Watch Guides, and consumer guides to choosing sustainable shrimp. Many people pledged never to eat shrimp again—a sure sign that our campaign is off to a great start!

Visit this blog frequently to learn about upcoming events this spring and summer!

Film on Shrimp Farming at Hazel Wolf Environmental Film Festival - May 4

It’s All a Lie (10 min, UK)
In September, 2007, Environmental Justice Foundation investigators visited Caravelas, Bahia State, on the NE coast of Brazil where a proposal for a shrimp farm the size of London’s Heathrow airport would turn coastal forests into a virtual wasteland, destroying sustainable livelihoods and threatening marine habitats. The film illustrates the delusion of local residents due to false promises made by the shrimp farming industry for jobs and a better life, and shows the devastation caused to alert Caravela’s residents of the activity’s reality. (Environmental Justice Foundation, 2007)

Date: Sunday, May 4
Time: 1pm
Location: Room 175, Johnson Hall, University of Washington

Purchase Ticket for this event.

Visit MAP at the Seattle Green Festival, April 12-13

Join us for this 2-day party with a purpose!

Come celebrate what’s working in our communities — for people, for business and for the environment. You’ll enjoy more than 150 visionary speakers, great how-to workshops, interactive kids’ activities, delicious organic cuisine and diverse live music. Shop in our extensive green marketplace of more than 300 exhibits — everything from all-natural cleaning products and Fair Trade gifts to solar panels, eco-cars and socially-responsible investing. You’ll find inspirational and practical ideas for healthy, earth-friendly living at Green Festival.

Look for Mangrove Action Project’s table in the Community Action area and learn about our new shrimp consumer awareness campaign. Pick up Seafood Watch guides, updated for 2008, and Shrimp Consumer Tips.