Consultant / consultancy: Human Rights Risks in Shrimp Supply Chains

Position: Consultant/Consultancy – Human Rights Risks in Shrimp Supply Chains: Assessment of Alignment with the ETI Base Code 

Location: Remote

Consultancy Period: September – 24 October 2025 (with webinars delivered in November and December 2025)

Application Deadline: 10 September 2025

This activity is part of ETI’s ongoing work to strengthen responsible purchasing practices across global seafood supply chains. The Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) is seeking to support UK, EU, and Australian retailers in embedding commercial practices that enable suppliers in farmed shrimp supply chains to comply with the ETI Base Code.

Purchasing decisions, including lead times, pricing, and order volumes, directly affect the ability of suppliers to meet labour and human rights standards. This consultancy aims to consolidate existing research to better understand these dynamics and identify actionable recommendations for retailers.

Purpose of the Consultancy
The consultancy will undertake desk-based research to:

• Conduct a focused literature review examining how purchasing practices of UK, EU, and Australian retailers affect the ability of suppliers in farmed shrimp supply chains to meet the ETI Base Code.
• Provide recommendations for UK, EU, and Australian retailers/supermarkets on commercial practices that enable suppliers to comply with the ETI Base Code, structured using the Food Framework.

Key Responsibilities
The consultant(s) will:

• Conduct a desk-based review of known human rights impacts in key shrimp sourcing regions (South Asia, Southeast Asia, Latin America) to provide context on sector challenges.
• Map these impacts against the ETI Base Code, highlighting how retailers’ purchasing practices can enable or hinder suppliers’ compliance.
• Examine sector-wide and retailer-specific purchasing practices using primary and secondary sources, focusing on buyer behaviour rather than supplier failings.
• Conduct a rapid, high-level assessment of the effectiveness and limitations of existing retailer approaches (e.g., certifications) to mitigate human rights risks.
• Develop a short list of self-assessment questions for retailers’ shrimp buying teams to evaluate whether their purchasing practices support compliance with the ETI Base Code.
• Provide recommendations for retailers’ responsible sourcing or sustainability teams on how to adopt commercial practices that facilitate supplier adherence to the ETI Base Code.
• Optionally propose a limited number of key informant interviews (KIIs) or other primary research methods to complement the research findings.

Outputs

• X1 synthesis report (c. 5–7 pages)
• X2 co-hosted remote webinars to share findings from the report (maximum 2 hours each)

Criteria/Requirements
Applicants should demonstrate:

• Expertise in business and human rights
• Expertise in shrimp and fishery supply chains
• Experience engaging with industry stakeholders, including conducting interviews
• Strong ability to synthesise and analyse data sets for compelling cases of support
• Familiarity with ETI Base Code, responsible purchasing practices, and relevant labour standards and due diligence legislation (CSDDD, Modern Slavery Act, EUFLR, GSCOP)
• Knowledge of responsible purchasing practices in retail
• Strong report writing in English

Contract Details

• Type: Consultancy contract
• Timeline: Report finalised by 24 October 2025; webinars delivered in November and December 2025 (dates TBC)
• Budget: £4,000–£10,000 (inclusive of all fees, travel, and expenses)
• Payment schedule: 50% upon contract signing/initiation of work; 50% upon submission and approval of final synthesis report

Application Process
We welcome applications from both individual consultants and organisations. Please submit the following by 10 September 2025 to hr@eti.org.uk with the subject line: “Human Rights Risks in Shrimp Supply Chains”.

1. CV(s)
2. A short proposal (2–3 pages) explaining how you meet the requirements, including methodology, action plan, timeline, and budget

Download the Terms of Reference above for further information.