Barriers to implementing corporate environmental responsibility in Thailand

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to gain an understanding of the primary barriers to the implementation of environmental responsibility in organizations. Design/methodology/approach The paper employs semi‐structured interviews with key informants and site observations. Key informants include top and senior managers of three frozen seafood processing companies in Thailand. Findings The paper identifies three primary barriers: the lack of a system perspective on seafood sustainability, absence of top management commitment and cultural diversity. Research limitations/implications As an exploratory case study, findings cannot necessarily be extrapolated to broader populations. To improve generalization of the findings, future research should broaden the sample. It would also be beneficial to pursue comparative research between industries, countries and regions. Practical implications Implementing corporate environmental responsibility requires raising “green culture” ideology throughout an organization. A system perspective on seafood sustainability, top management commitment and proper management of cultural diversity plays a significant role in affecting organizational change towards sustainability. Originality/value This paper contributes to a greater understanding of the role of humans and culture in greening the seafood supply chain.