Child Laborers Toil In Thai Seafood Factories

[Jai Dee]

Child laborers toil in Thai seafood factories

SAMUT SAKHON, Thailand (Reuters) - It is 7.30 in the evening and an excited chatter fills the room as 11-year-old Nampeung and her friends get their work checked before clearing their desks and heading home.

But this is no scene from the end of a school day.

Nampeung is an ethnic Mon girl from military-ruled Myanmar who has been working in a seafood factory in central Thailand for nearly three years.

The desks are the metal tables where she spends six days a week shelling shrimps and her work is measured by the kilogram.

Of the 200 people working in the barn-like factory during an unannounced visit by Reuters, nearly half appeared to be in their early teens or younger -- clear evidence of child labor in an industry worth $2 billion a year in exports.

Half Thailand's exported shrimps go to the United States, where they end up on the shelves of retail giants such as Wal-Mart and Costco, according to Poj Aramwattananont, president of the Thai Frozen Foods Association.

Japan and Europe each account for another 20 percent.

Even though she can only dream of going to school, Nampeung is one of the lucky ones. She makes up to 300 baht ($9) a day -- more than the province's minimum wage -- and sees nothing wrong with children her age working.

"The old people are so slow," she said with a broad smile, sitting demurely on the floor of the concrete hut next to the factory, which she shares with her mother, father and three siblings.

SLAVE LABOUR

Other factories in the coastal province of Samut Sakhon, 50 km (30 miles) west of Bangkok, where 40 percent of all Thailand's shrimps are processed, do not have such a contented workforce.

A police raid on a factory called Ranya Paew in September revealed conditions that were little short of mediaeval.

Around 800 men, women and children from deeply impoverished Myanmar -- or Burma, as it used to be known -- were imprisoned in a compound behind 15 foot (4.5 meter) walls topped with razor wire and patrolled by armed guards.

The rescued workers told human rights monitors they had to work 18 hours or more a day and were paid 400 baht a month, out of which they had to buy food -- mainly rancid pork -- from the factory's owner.

Those who asked for a break had a metal rod shoved up their nostrils. Three women who asked to leave were paraded in front of the other workers, stripped naked and had their heads shaved.

One shipment from Ranya Paew a few years ago had ended up in the United States, according to a Western diplomat who has followed the case closely.

The labor Rights Promotion Network (LPN), a non-governmental organization that estimates there are 200,000 Myanmar migrant workers in Samut Sakhon -- of whom only 70,000 are registered legally -- says the Ranya Paew case is the worst it has seen.

But it is also, LPN says, just the tip of a human trafficking iceberg of factories fed by cross-border people-smuggling rings and labor brokers that enjoy the complicity, if not active involvement, of provincial police and government officials.

"For many migrants, work in Samut Sakhon is the chance for a better life, but for too many it leads to abuse," LPN president Sompong Srakaew said.

"Unscrupulous employers and brokers conspire to ensure migrant workers remain vulnerable to exploitation. This is only possible with the complicity of elements within the law enforcement authorities," he said.

AUDITS

Wal-Mart and Costco said none of their shrimp had ever come from Ranya Paew and that strict ethical guidelines for suppliers, as well as audits of processing units in Thailand, ensured they complied with food standards and labor regulations.

Thai Frozen Foods Association chief Poj Aramwattananont also denied children or trafficked people worked in the industry, saying factories were monitored carefully.

"There are no more illegal workers in the Thai food industry because the government registers all the workers properly. We never use child labor," he told Reuters.

However, even Thailand's biggest agroindustrial firm, Charoen Pokphand Foods (CPF), which produces its own shrimp from pond to packet to ensure a higher degree of transparency, is not untouched by allegations of trafficked labor.

CPF sells a range of shrimp dishes to the U.S. and Europe, including the "Thai torpedo" and "Bangkok firecracker."

According to LPN, when police and immigration officials raided a CPF factory in Samut Sakhon on April 5 and fired shots into the air, more than 100 Myanmar migrants in the compound tried to escape by swimming a canal.

Six workers who could not swim are thought to have drowned, LPN said, and police rounded up and deported 90 others back to Myanmar for being illegal migrants.

Narong Kruakrai, general manager of the CPF plant, described the raid as a "regular visit" by immigration police, and said his factory never hired illegal workers. LPN said the workers appeared to have been "employed" by a third-party broker.

With smaller shrimp companies, overseas buyers have an even harder time conducting their own background checks as much of the processing is outsourced to small operators.

As a result, foreign firms rely more on the Thai labor Ministry, which is responsible for ensuring factories do not use illegal or child workers. However the ministry is short on staff, as well as enthusiasm, the Western diplomat said.

"The Thai Ministry of labor lacks the proper resources to conduct rigorous inspections of these factories," he said.

Despite the discovery of abuses at Ranya Paew -- around 200 Myanmar men were deported as illegal immigrants and more than 60 women and children are in a trafficking victims centre in Bangkok -- Samut Sakhon police have allowed the plant to remain open.

Source: Reuters - 25 April 2007

[sriracha john]

Migrant workers work at a shrimp factory in Samut Sakhon on the outskirts of Bangkok. Human rights groups say thousands of children and illegal Myanmar migrants are working in Thailand's $2 billion-a-year shrimp export industry, often in conditions little short of modern-day slavery. Industry officials deny the allegations.

REUTERS

[Mid]

a story with the potential to do a lot of damage to a very valuable export industry ..........................

viva globalisation

[taxexile]

Despite the discovery of abuses at Ranya Paew -- around 200 Myanmar men were deported as illegal immigrants and more than 60 women and children are in a trafficking victims centre in Bangkok -- Samut Sakhon police have allowed the plant to remain open.

again , i hope these reports are given the publicity they deserve in the west , who are the biggest customers of these factories.

although the story about the eleven year old is probably shocking to westerners who have no exoerience of life here , i dont find it disturbing at all . her life working here is better than it would be back in myanmar.

the story about the other factory however is nothing short of a national disgrace , i have read equally horrifying stories in the thai press about the ill treatment and literal imprisonment and starvation on trawlers of burmese fisherman working for thais.

its about time the fishing industry as a whole was reformed , given the amount of profit thailand and its junta make from it.

but of course nothing will happen , the immoral owners of the factories and boats will pay off the authorities so that they can carry on as before.

only foriegn publicity causing even more "loss of face" to thailands already besmirched reputation will kick start the junta into taking any action.

when oh when will the thais get the governance and public services they deserve that will enable them to hold their heads up with pride when the word thailand is mentioned.

[cdnvic]

I try when I can to buy Thai products when I'm in Canada but seeing stuff like this makes me wonder if I'm supporting these kinds of activities.

[taxexile]

a story with the potential to do a lot of damage to a very valuable export industry ..........................

viva globalisation

i would blame greed and corruption before globalisation.

many exporting industries here and elsewhere in asia have cleaned up their act , and treat their workforce fairly and responsibly ...... and still turn a healthy profit.

the fishing industry is still truly medieval , and reform is long overdue.

[sriracha john]

Despite the discovery of abuses at Ranya Paew -- around 200 Myanmar men were deported as illegal immigrants and more than 60 women and children are in a trafficking victims centre in Bangkok -- Samut Sakhon police have allowed the plant to remain open.

again , i hope these reports are given the publicity they deserve in the west , who are the biggest customers of these factories.

although the story about the eleven year old is probably shocking to westerners who have no experience of life here , i don't find it disturbing at all . her life working here is better than it would be back in Myanmar.

the story about the other factory however is nothing short of a national disgrace , i have read equally horrifying stories in the Thai press about the ill treatment and literal imprisonment and starvation on trawlers of Burmese fisherman working for Thais.

Absolutely... as exemplified by the thread:

Survivors Of Thai Death Ships Sue Owners, 39 Fisherman Died and were simply Dumped Overboard

its about time the fishing industry as a whole was reformed , given the amount of profit Thailand and its junta make from it.

but of course nothing will happen , the immoral owners of the factories and boats will pay off the authorities so that they can carry on as before.

only foreign publicity causing even more "loss of face" to Thailand's already besmirched reputation will kick start the junta into taking any action.

when oh when will the Thais get the governance and public services they deserve that will enable them to hold their heads up with pride when the word Thailand is mentioned.

In absolute, full agreement.

Edited April 25, 2007 by sriracha john

[cdnvic]

a story with the potential to do a lot of damage to a very valuable export industry ..........................

viva globalisation

Easy catch phrase but hardly appropriate.

Kids were being enslaved long before free trade agreements came into being. In fact many trade agreements have clauses forbidding this kind of abuse.

[Galong]

Combined with the fact that fishermen are raping the sea and trawling in national park waters (seen it many times in Tarutao), this is just one more good reason to NOT eat seafood.

[Pepe']

My first job was at ten years old. Working on truck farms in NE Pennsylvania during the summer vacation.

My first real job was at eleven years old receiving shipments on the loading dock of a large family shoe store. Then I would unpack the shipments and stock the shelves.

$1.25 per hour. About a year later at the Easter rush I went out "on the floor" to start selling shoes to customers at about twelve years old. Got a buck an hour raise and 10% commission.

I was glad to have the money, which was all given to my family then I got a small allowance.

I don't think there's anything wrong with kids working at a very young age. Infact I think it's great!

As long as they are not deprived of a good education.

Especially the great education that is available in Thailand's schools.

That would be a terrible loss.

[Pepe']

Despite the discovery of abuses at Ranya Paew -- around 200 Myanmar men were deported as illegal immigrants and more than 60 women and children are in a trafficking victims centre in Bangkok -- Samut Sakhon police have allowed the plant to remain open.

again , i hope these reports are given the publicity they deserve in the west , who are the biggest customers of these factories.

although the story about the eleven year old is probably shocking to westerners who have no experience of life here , i don't find it disturbing at all . her life working here is better than it would be back in Myanmar.

the story about the other factory however is nothing short of a national disgrace , i have read equally horrifying stories in the Thai press about the ill treatment and literal imprisonment and starvation on trawlers of Burmese fisherman working for Thais.

Absolutely... as exemplified by the thread:

Survivors Of Thai Death Ships Sue Owners, 39 Fisherman Died and were simply Dumped Overboard

its about time the fishing industry as a whole was reformed , given the amount of profit Thailand and its junta make from it.

but of course nothing will happen , the immoral owners of the factories and boats will pay off the authorities so that they can carry on as before.

only foreign publicity causing even more "loss of face" to Thailand's already besmirched reputation will kick start the junta into taking any action.

when oh when will the Thais get the governance and public services they deserve that will enable them to hold their heads up with pride when the word Thailand is mentioned.

In absolute, full agreement.

----------------------------

The ancient Pali texts describe this time period we are in as "Kali Yuga." It started about 5000 years ago and according to this philosophy, things, in fact everything just gets worse for the next aprx. 430,000 years until the distruction of the entire cosmic manifestation. If you believe that sort of thing?

In this time period it is described that demons will incarnate as world leaders who appear to be human in form but they are in fact not human. Their only business is to create havoc. I think "they've got it down."

I think most of us can think of a few examples right off the top of our heads

They're on a roll. We can debate, postulate and banter back and forth all we want. In the end its all mental master------ and pretty much a waste of time.

But hey we've got to do something with our spare time and opinions

Thank God we have Buddha...

[Tony Clifton]

On the Inside: Child labour, child abductions, human trafficking, prostitution, corruption, no intellectual property rights unless Thai, no real law enforcement.

On the outside: 2 airports, The Emporium, Siam Paragon, beaches and tourist resorts, BMWs and Mercedes everywhere, subway, skytrain, mega highways.

Looks good from over there doesn't it?

[Payboy]

According to LPN, when police and immigration officials raided a CPF factory in Samut Sakhon on April 5 and fired shots into the air, more than 100 Myanmar migrants in the compound tried to escape by swimming a canal.

why did they fire shots into the air?

[highdiver]

Even though she can only dream of going to school, Nampeung is one of the lucky ones. She makes up to 300 baht ($9) a day -- more than the province's minimum wage -- and sees nothing wrong with children her age working.

300 baht a day. if she works 30 days uts 9000 bht pr month. that is a very good salary in rural thailand. and its a sh.. load of money in Burma.

I dont think its right that kids are working and not getting an education but i can understand the motivation.

I have seen in japan forigners from many western countries doing many odd jobs that they will never do back where they came from. many of them doing it ileagaly exposed to threats by local mafia and police and many times abused. because of rental prices they tend to stay together cramping in a small 1 room aprtment as many as they can. parcticly like sardins in a tin box...

So why were they doing it because at the end of the month they were able to save 8-10,000 usd.

one of those youngsters told me that he knows that he is ileagal and that he knows that he is being abused but the money that he can make in 1 year can give him a head up start for life back in his country.

many thais are working on farm lands in many western countries for what is considered in the west as below minimum salary. some of them ileagal and some with proper work permits. they are doing it because the locals dont want to do those low paying jobs..

but for a thai to make 40-50,000 baht a month is to find "gold" after 1-2 years he returns to his village as a rich man and can afford to give his family an better life.

A friend of mine is a thai working as a nurse in a rich arab oil country, although she is legal with a work permit, she hates it there.

she obliged to wear a veil, can not have a drink.. and her employer is constantly sexualy harresing her. then why does she stay??

because she makes 250,000 baht per month.

Although it may seem to some as abuse and taking advantage to others it may seem a chance of a life time.

[kmart]

According to LPN, when police and immigration officials raided a CPF factory in Samut Sakhon on April 5 and fired shots into the air, more than 100 Myanmar migrants in the compound tried to escape by swimming a canal.

why did they fire shots into the air?

Because they can.

Burma must be a really terrible place to make a lot of (sometimes educated) Burmese to come working as skivvies here, and be treated worse than cattle by their historic enemies...?

Burma is also formerly a Buddhist Kingdom ruled by an inept, paranoid junta.

[Tony Clifton]

Even though she can only dream of going to school, Nampeung is one of the lucky ones. She makes up to 300 baht ($9) a day -- more than the province's minimum wage -- and sees nothing wrong with children her age working.

300 baht a day. if she works 30 days uts 9000 bht pr month. that is a very good salary in rural thailand. and its a sh.. load of money in Burma.

I dont think its right that kids are working and not getting an education but i can understand the motivation.

I have seen in japan forigners from many western countries doing many odd jobs that they will never do back where they came from. many of them doing it ileagaly exposed to threats by local mafia and police and many times abused. because of rental prices they tend to stay together cramping in a small 1 room aprtment as many as they can. parcticly like sardins in a tin box...

So why were they doing it because at the end of the month they were able to save 8-10,000 usd.

one of those youngsters told me that he knows that he is ileagal and that he knows that he is being abused but the money that he can make in 1 year can give him a head up start for life back in his country.

many thais are working on farm lands in many western countries for what is considered in the west as below minimum salary. some of them ileagal and some with proper work permits. they are doing it because the locals dont want to do those low paying jobs..

but for a thai to make 40-50,000 baht a month is to find "gold" after 1-2 years he returns to his village as a rich man and can afford to give his family an better life.

A friend of mine is a thai working as a nurse in a rich arab oil country, although she is legal with a work permit, she hates it there.

she obliged to wear a veil, can not have a drink.. and her employer is constantly sexualy harresing her. then why does she stay??

because she makes 250,000 baht per month.

Although it may seem to some as abuse and taking advantage to others it may seem a chance of a life time.

Don't get too excited about the salary mentioned. Half of it, if not more, is usually collected by boys in brown on a monthly basis. You don't pay, you don,t stay.

[sriracha john]

Thai Shrimp Firm Denies Illegal Labour Allegations

Leading Thai food company Charoen Pokphand Foods (CPF) denied on Friday it employed illegal labourers from Myanmar in its shrimp processing factories near Bangkok.

CPF executive vice president Pisit Ohmpornnuwat said reports of more than 100 illegal Myanmar workers fleeing a police raid on a unit in Samut Sakhon province, 50 km (30 miles) west of Bangkok, earlier this month were a "misunderstanding".

"All labourers have been employed legally on the standard of 18-years-old age and applied on all labour laws and regulations," he said in a statement.

"The situation was normal on the visit by the police and immigration officials," he said.

The Labour Rights Promotion Network (LPN), a non-governmental organisation helping Myanmar migrants in the coastal province, told Reuters immigration police had deported 90 of the workers who tried to escape by swimming a canal.

LPN estimates there as many as 200,000 Myanmar migrants working in the seafood industry in Samut Sakhon, where around 40 percent of Thailand's shrimps are peeled and processed for export. Only 70,000 are legally registered.

Many of the workers are smuggled into Thailand by cross-border labour brokers, who enjoy the complicity if not active involvement of provincial police and government officials.

An unannounced visit by Reuters to a non-CPF shrimp processing factory in Samut Sakhon last month also revealed widespread use of child labour in the industry.

Around half Thailand's shrimps, which are worth $2 billion a year in exports, are sold to retailers in the United States. Europe and Japan account for most of the rest.

- Reuters

=================================================

That's about as lame a denial as I've ever seen....

[brahmburgers]

it's as despicable as it is believable - for those who are acquainted with how heartless some Thai bosses can be in taking advantage of the very vulnerable and desperate among us. The only real pressure for cleaning up the exploitation will (as usual in humanitarian-abuse cases) come from outside Thailand.

Also: shrimp harvesting is very environmentally destructive regardless of whether it's harvested from the oceans or from farms. I'm not a vegetarian, but I refuse to ever eat shrimp - knowing how destructive it is to breed and harvest; if it's caught in the wild, it necessetates the killing of masses of other sea life and destruction of coral from trawling sea beds. If it's farmed, it necessitates the eradication of mangroves - which are an essential link for a healthy sea ecology.

[ratcatcher]

According to LPN, when police and immigration officials raided a CPF factory in Samut Sakhon on April 5 and fired shots into the air, more than 100 Myanmar migrants in the compound tried to escape by swimming a canal.

why did they fire shots into the air?

Because they can.

Burma must be a really terrible place to make a lot of (sometimes educated) Burmese to come working as skivvies here, and be treated worse than cattle by their historic enemies...?

Burma is also formerly a Buddhist Kingdom ruled by an inept, paranoid junta.

It is!

The trouble is that if Burma was ever given a chance at democracy with a proper system, I believe Thailand would face major economic problems. Burma has half the coastline of Thailand but has massive resources in it's coastal seas, forests and in the ground. Maybe Thailand is secretly happy that Burma is not developed to it's potential. So illegal immigrants flock here much the same way poor Mexicans sneak into the USA..............for money and a future. That still doesn't exonerate the greedy Thai employers and company owners who exploit these economic victims.

[cdnvic]

Burma is also formerly a Buddhist Kingdom ruled by an inept, paranoid junta.

They replaced the yolk of colonialism with the yolk of ineptitude.

That's one thing I noticed after Burmese visa runs. Upon getting back, Thailand seemed so wealthy, clean, and well governed in comparison.

[taxexile]

They replaced the yolk of colonialism with the yolk of ineptitude

dont you mean "yoke"

when i travelled around burma in the eighties , old timers would tell me how good life was "under the yoke of colonialism" , and how well run the place was ........... a bit like canada was maybe !

[cdnvic]

They replaced the yolk of colonialism with the yolk of ineptitude

dont you mean "yoke"

when i travelled around burma in the eighties , old timers would tell me how good life was "under the yoke of colonialism" , and how well run the place was ........... a bit like canada was maybe !

You got me on the yoke/yolk thing but the rest makes no sense?

[ratcatcher]

They replaced the yolk of colonialism with the yolk of ineptitude

dont you mean "yoke"

when i travelled around burma in the eighties , old timers would tell me how good life was "under the yoke of colonialism" , and how well run the place was ........... a bit like canada was maybe !

Old timers usually do feel that the old "Colonial days" uunder the Bwitish were better. They probably were. Things ran fairly efficiently although profits often ended up in London.

The Indians were the greatest beneficiaries (if I may use that word) of British colonialism. They have a massive infrastructure, a legacy of colonial days, that has now placed them in the forefront of growing economies in Asia.

Today Burma is in ruins thanks to a group of evil military dictators who profit from the misery of their own people.

Thankfully Thailand has H.M.to thank for holding this country together. The Burmese ain't so lucky.

Edited April 28, 2007 by ratcatcher

[Mid]

Kids were being enslaved long before free trade agreements came into being. In fact many trade agreements have clauses forbidding this kind of abuse.

my very point ,

beware of catch phrases , they do have there place ...........................................

[thaigene2]

"Western diplomats" probably means a US embassy source. Remember the US is in the process of finding pressure points to apply to FTA negotiations with Thailand. Always ask yourself who gains by publicizing this now. Why didn't they care before?

Also remember the US dollar is dropping (probably a US administration policy) partly designed to make foreign (read Asian/Chinese) goods more expensive, and to slow consumer spending by Americans on imported goods and thus try to correct the ballooning trade defecit. Therefore it makes sense for the US to go after a country that is using "unfair" labor practices - clothing/garments from Mae Sot area will be next since many factories there use similar tactics to absue migrant workers and thus keep costs low for export.

Whatever the reasons though, it's good to see a light shining brightly on a dark area of society that needs attention.

Edited April 29, 2007 by thaigene2

[mogoso]

The ancient Pali texts describe this time period we are in as "Kali Yuga." It started about 5000 years ago and according to this philosophy, things, in fact everything just gets worse for the next aprx. 430,000 years until the distruction of the entire cosmic manifestation. If you believe that sort of thing?

In this time period it is described that demons will incarnate as world leaders who appear to be human in form but they are in fact not human. Their only business is to create havoc. I think "they've got it down."

================================================================================

=========================

The Mayas calendar have the civilization being destroyed in 2012. Time to say your goodbyes.

As for 100 running when shots are fired, kind of a natural reaction to most. The loss of six lives, is certainly most regretable because of it. I wonder if any reprimands were issued? Naw I reckon naught

[Johpa]

Burma must be a really terrible place to make a lot of (sometimes educated) Burmese to come working as skivvies here, and be treated worse than cattle by their historic enemies...?

Burma is also formerly a Buddhist Kingdom ruled by an inept, paranoid junta.

Burma, AKA Myanmar, is indeed a really terrible place at the moment, but a place that Thailand apparently wishes to emmulate with its own ever increasing inept and paranoid junta Or as one recent poster noted, Thailand is undergoing a slow "Myanmarization" process.

[nikster]

When talking about child labor, I think it's important to look at/solve the underlying problems first.

The dumb western approach of banning/closing factories who use child labor produces only one thing: Jobless children. Who may have to do even worse jobs than the one in the factory to survive. Or starve?

To fight child labor you have to:

- Fight poverty

- Establish and enforce a rule of law (so slave conditions cannot happen, minimum wages are being enforced, etc etc).

Nothing can work without the rule of law - and that's Thailand's biggest problem.

[Scott]

"Western diplomats" probably means a US embassy source. Remember the US is in the process of finding pressure points to apply to FTA negotiations with Thailand. Always ask yourself who gains by publicizing this now. Why didn't they care before?

Also remember the US dollar is dropping (probably a US administration policy) partly designed to make foreign (read Asian/Chinese) goods more expensive, and to slow consumer spending by Americans on imported goods and thus try to correct the ballooning trade defecit. Therefore it makes sense for the US to go after a country that is using "unfair" labor practices - clothing/garments from Mae Sot area will be next since many factories there use similar tactics to absue migrant workers and thus keep costs low for export.

Whatever the reasons though, it's good to see a light shining brightly on a dark area of society that needs attention.

I think Reuters news agency is the impetus behind this. It's always interesting when the "evil empire" is behind everything. The US gov't has bigger fish to fry right now--read Iraq, N. Korea, Iran--than Thai child labour works.

Europe, and the European Union, have for a number of years been at the forefront of the situation in Myanmar. They have been vocal in attempting to get sanctions and in trying to restore democracy. The US gov't backs them, but certainly is far from being a leader in the struggle to assist the Burmese.

And the current US Embassador, with his perceived pro-business sentiment, would hardly be likely to stick his nose in this type of affair.

[Pepe']

<h1 class="headline">In Thai shrimp industry, child labor and rights abuses persist</h1> By Ed Cropley Reuters Published: April 25, 2007 document.writeln('<div id="bodyText" style="font-size: ' + currentTextSize + 'px; line-height: ' + currentLineHeight + 'px;">');

SAMUT SAKHON, Thailand: It is 7:30 p.m., and an excited chatter fills the room as Nampeung, 11, and her friends get their work checked before clearing their desks and heading home.

But this is no scene from the end of a school day.

Nampeung is from Myanmar and an ethnic Mon girl who has been working in a seafood factory in central Thailand for nearly three years.

The desks are the metal tables where she spends six days a week shelling shrimp, and her work is measured by the kilogram.

Of the 200 people working in a barnlike factory during an unannounced visit by Reuters, nearly half appeared to be in their early teens or younger - clear evidence of child labor in an industry worth $2 billion a year in exports.

Half of Thailand's exported shrimp goes to the United States, where it ends up on the shelves of retail giants like Wal-Mart Stores and Costco, according to Poj Aramwattananont, president of the Thai Frozen Foods Association. Japan and Europe each account for 20 percent.

Even though she can only dream of going to school, Nampeung is one of the lucky ones. She makes as much as 300 baht, or $9, a day - more than the province's minimum wage - and sees nothing wrong with children her age working.

"The old people are so slow," she said with a broad smile, sitting demurely on the floor of the concrete hut next to the factory, which she shares with her mother, father and three siblings.

Other factories in the coastal province of Samut Sakhon, 50 kilometers, or 30 miles, west of Bangkok, where 40 percent of all shrimp are processed, do not have such a contented work force.

A police raid on a factory called Ranya Paew in September revealed conditions that were little short of medieval.

Around 800 men, women and children from Myanmar were imprisoned behind walls 5 meters, or 16 feet, high and topped with razor wire in a compound patrolled by armed guards.

The rescued workers told human rights monitors that they had to work 18 hours or more a day and were paid 400 baht a month, out of which they had to buy food - mainly rancid pork - from the factory's owner.

Those who asked for a break had a metal rod shoved up their nostrils. Three women who asked to leave were paraded in front of the other workers, stripped naked and had their heads shaved.

The Labor Rights Promotion Network, a nongovernmental organization that estimates there are 200,000 Burmese migrant workers in Samut Sakhon - of whom only 70,000 are legally registered - says that the Ranya Paew case is the worst it has seen.

But this, the group says, is just the tip of a human trafficking iceberg of factories fed by people-smuggling rings and labor brokers that have the complicity, if not active involvement, of government officials and the provincial police.

"For many migrants, work in Samut Sakhon is the chance for a better life, but for too many it leads to abuse," said Sompong Srakaew, president of the nongovernment organization.

"Unscrupulous employers and brokers conspire to ensure migrant workers remain vulnerable to exploitation. This is only possible with the complicity of elements within the law enforcement authorities."

Wal-Mart and Costco said that none of their shrimp had ever come from Ranya Paew and that strict ethical guidelines for suppliers, as well as audits of processing units in Thailand, ensured that they complied with food standards and labor regulations.

One shipment from Ranya Paew a few years ago, however, did end up in the United States, according to a Western diplomat who has followed the case closely.

Poj, the president of the Thai Frozen Foods Association, denied that children or trafficked people worked in the industry, saying factories were monitored carefully.

"There are no more illegal workers in the Thai food industry, because the government registers all the workers properly," he said. "We never use child labor."

But even Thailand's biggest agro-industrial company, Charoen Pokphand Foods, which produces its own shrimp from pond to package, is not untouched by allegations of trafficked labor.

The company sells a range of shrimp products to the United States and Europe, including the "Thai Torpedo" and "Bangkok Firecracker."

According to the Labor Rights Promotion Network, when the police and immigration officials raided a Charoen Pokphand factory in Samut Sakhon on April 5 and fired shots into the air, more than 100 Burmese migrants in the compound tried to escape by swimming a canal.