Guest: Noel Thomas of Darkwatch on human trafficking and slave labor within supply chains; Ryder raises awareness; Cargo thieves find clever ways to steal freight

Nov 7, 2025

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Our guest on this week's episode is Noel Thomas, founder and CEO of Dark Watch. Without even knowing it, many companies with extended supply chains may participating in human trafficking and forced labor. It exists around the world and even here in the United States where people are manipulated into modern forms of slavery. What can we do to protect our supply chains and company reputations, while more importantly helping these most vulnerable people?

Transportation and logistics provider Ryder System, Inc. is doing its part to address the issue of human trafficking in the supply chain. Ryder is hosting a mobile exhibit on the issue at its Fort Worth, Texas, Transportation Management Center today. The event is for Ryder employees, local law enforcement, and public officials and it features the Freedom Drivers Project (FDP); this is a national mobile exhibit developed by the nonprofit group Truckers Against Trafficking (TAT), which is an alliance of trucking industry companies, law enforcement, and government agencies.

We’ve heard a lot about cargo theft lately, and that’s not surprising, given that there is so much freight moving around the country on any given day. The latest report we saw from the theft prevention firm CargoNet shows that many thieves are focusing their efforts on only the highest value cargo shipments.

Supply Chain Xchange also offers a podcast series called Supply Chain in the Fast Lane. It is co-produced with the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals. A new series is now available on Top Threats to our Supply Chains. It covers topics including Geopolitical Risks, Economic Instability, Cybersecurity Risks, Threats to energy and electric grids; Supplier Risks, and Transportation Disruptions Go to your favorite podcast platform to subscribe and to listen to past and future episodes. The podcast is also available at www.thescxchange.com.

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This podcast episode is sponsored by: Storage Solutions

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