Thai Union Group Joins Protecting Blue Whales & Blue Skies to Advance More Responsible Shipping on California Coast

Global seafood leader reinforces commitment to responsible shipping, helping reduce whale ship strikes, air pollution, and ocean noise on the U.S. West Coast.

LA JOLLA, CA, UNITED STATES, April 22, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Protecting Blue Whales and Blue Skies (BWBS) and Thai Union Group (Thai Union) today announced that Thai Union, including its operating companies Chicken of the Sea International, Chicken of the Sea Frozen Foods, and U.S. Pet Nutrition, has joined the BWBS Ambassador Program, underscoring a shared commitment to supporting more responsible shipping practices along the U.S. West Coast.

Thai Union has been a leader in the global seafood industry for nearly 50 years. With a portfolio of 21 brands and operations spanning the globe, the company is a global seafood leader and has a longstanding focus on sustainability, innovation, and responsible business practices.

BWBS collaborates with global ship operators to address one of the most significant threats to whales worldwide—and particularly to endangered blue, fin, and humpback whales in California waters: fatal ship strikes. By encouraging and independently verifying shipping lines’ voluntary cooperation with Vessel Speed Reduction (VSR) in areas of critical whale habitat, participating vessels have been shown to reduce the risk of lethal ship strikes by approximately 40%. These actions also contribute to meaningful reductions in regional air pollution affecting California communities and underwater noise pollution, which can interfere with whales’ ability to forage, communicate, hunt, and navigate.

Led by its consumer-facing brand, Chicken of the Sea, Thai Union’s North American portfolio has been bringing high-quality, affordable seafood to tables across the region for over a century. Across its global operations, Thai Union has prioritized reducing impacts on marine ecosystems, with a strong focus on minimizing bycatch, reducing interactions with endangered, threatened, and protected (ETP) species, and supporting healthy ocean habitats.

Through its SeaChange^® sustainability strategy, Thai Union advances responsible fishing practices that protect marine mammals and other vulnerable species, strengthen bycatch mitigation measures, and support ecosystem restoration efforts in key fisheries. These commitments are reinforced by broader initiatives across climate action, supply chain accountability, and responsible operations at sea, aligning closely with the goals of the BWBS program to reduce risks to marine mammals, improve ocean health, and support cleaner, more sustainable maritime activity.

Through BWBS’ ambassador program, brands, retailers, ports, logistics and marine technology providers are empowered to support more responsible shipping within their supply chain and send a clear demand signal that the efforts by participating shipping lines is not only good for whales and clean air, but also for business. When a company becomes an ambassador, it represents a commitment to supporting the program and responsible shipping, along with gaining access to deeper data on the collective efforts and impact of participating ocean freight companies. Ambassadors can use this information to help spread awareness of opportunities to protect endangered marine life and air quality, and inform future shipment decisions to prioritize more sustainable shipping choices.

“Protecting ocean ecosystems is integral to our role as a global seafood and pet food company. Partnering with Blue Whales and Blue Skies reflects our commitment to supporting responsible ocean shipping, protecting at-risk marine life, and reducing air and climate impacts, while continuing to serve our customers with reliability and helping ensure healthy oceans for generations to come.” - Adam Brennan, Chief Sustainability and Communications Officer.

Since the program launched in 2014, over 76 shipping companies have participated in the program. Over the 2025 Season alone, the cumulative whale-safer distance traveled by participating vessels was 481,000 nautical miles (or 553,800 miles, which is greater than a trip to the moon and back.) Since the program was founded, whale-safer transits have resulted in over 260,000 MT of regional greenhouse gas emissions avoided and over 7,390 tons of smog-forming NOx emissions avoided.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Thai Union’s North American companies to the program as a part of its broader sustainability progress and strategy. We also sincerely appreciate the critical role companies like Thai Union play in letting participating shipping lines know their exemplary efforts with Blue Whales and Blue Skies are supported and valued by their major customers.” - Becca Tucker, Director of Corporate Engagement, Protecting Blue Whales and Blue Skies Program.

To learn more about the impact of the program and opportunities to ship more responsibly, see here: https://bluewhalesblueskies.org/impact/.

See here for more on the ambassador program: https://bluewhalesblueskies.org/ambassador-program/join/

For more on Thai Union and its companies: thaiunion.com

Kelly Tseng
Protecting Blue Whales and Blue Skies
email us here

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