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H&M announced last week that they will no longer source cotton from Xinjiang after credible accusations of forced labor emerged. They cut ties with their supplier Huafu.
But @HM can’t stop there. I found another supplier @HM should look into. https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3101696/hm-cuts-ties-chinese-supplier-over-xinjiang-forced-labour
But @HM can’t stop there. I found another supplier @HM should look into. https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3101696/hm-cuts-ties-chinese-supplier-over-xinjiang-forced-labour
I admire @HM’s bold stand against #Uyghur forced labor in China. The effect of their commitment will depend on how dedicated they (and other companies) are in investigating their supply chains thoroughly.
Chinese govt and companies don’t make it easy for brands to trace their products to their sources. But surprisingly, with minimal effort, many supply chains are discoverable online, for all to see. And the US govt is putting brands on notice.
The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act will institute a presumption that all products made in Xinjiang are made by forced labor because of pervasive state-incentivized coercive labor programs that affect nearly every minority household in the region. https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/6210?s=1&r=1
To avoid this forced labor, @HM should also look into Zhejiang Zhongda, who claims to partner w/ @HM, @Target, @CarrefourGroup, @Walmart, @Zara, J.C. Penny, BCBG & @Macys.
https://web.archive.org/save/http://www.zjzdint.com/about_us.html?compid=09
https://web.archive.org/save/http://www.zjzdint.com/about_us.html?compid=09
Zhejiang Zhongda is a major investor in Aksu Xinzi Textile Company in Xinjiang, which does spinning, weaving, knitting, and production of garment textiles.
https://web.archive.org/web/20200917185102/https://www.qcc.com/cfengxian/1447e5e33c82006bd156656ce71fd031
https://web.archive.org/web/20200917185102/https://www.qcc.com/cfengxian/1447e5e33c82006bd156656ce71fd031
Aksu Embroidery Textile Company in Xinjiang is also owned by Zhejiang Zhongda (& their parent company Zhezhiang Wuchan) and is located in the Aksu Textile Industrial City Complex, which is just a 20 minute drive from a concentration camp.
https://www.qixin.com/company/88e8f743-c6f2-4669-890a-b7261fafdb15
https://www.qixin.com/company/88e8f743-c6f2-4669-890a-b7261fafdb15
Zhejiang Zhongda’s website says their textile production “relies on Xinjiang factories to produce cotton yarn.” https://archive.vn/ph54g
Zhejiang Zhongda’s parent company, Zhejiang Wuchan has a branch called Wuchan Xinjiang in the provincial capital of Urumqi since 2011.
https://web.archive.org/save/http://www.wzgroup.cn/en/news/info/1062.html?id=6
https://web.archive.org/save/http://www.wzgroup.cn/en/news/info/1062.html?id=6
In 2013, Zhejiang Zhongda announced an agreement with a subsidiary of their parent company to lease 5 ginning factories & create a cotton processing/purchase/delivery/ storage system in Xinjiang.
http://data.eastmoney.com/notices/detail/600704/AN201309240004417196,JUU3JTg5JUE5JUU0JUJBJUE3JUU0JUI4JUFEJUU1JUE0JUE3.html
http://data.eastmoney.com/notices/detail/600704/AN201309240004417196,JUU3JTg5JUE5JUU0JUJBJUE3JUU0JUI4JUFEJUU1JUE0JUE3.html
According to customs records compiled at http://ImportYeti.com and http://ImportGenius.com , Zhejiang Zhongda has shipped over 450 shipments of apparel and textiles to North America in the last year. That includes PPE gowns, K95 masks.
Customs data search suggests brands whose products could be at the end of the Xinjiang textiles&cotton -> Zhejiang Zhongda -> US supply chain include @Macys @Guess, @UGGSince1974, @Lacoste, @POWGloves, @KingKoilCanada, @Vissla, @ChampionTeams, @LoblawsON, @MontgomeryWard, Bardot
According to US customs data, Zhejiang Zhongda has shipped over 14,000 lbs of Halloween costumes alone to the US since late June. (Total of all goods ZZ has shipped to US this year: over 8 million pounds) DIY this Halloween!
Customs data reveals hundreds of other Zhejiang Zhongda shipments into the US in the last year, but they go through wholesalers in the US, where the supply chain trail runs cold. But companies should demand to know who their suppliers are buying from.
Cotton&textiles from Xinjiang are tainted with forced labor. Xinjiang cotton constitutes over 80% of China’s cotton supply. Companies should refuse suppliers that they know for sure are buying Xinjiang cotton or from Xinjiang factories, as Zhejiang Zhongda does.
It took ~a day’s work to connect many global brands to the v. high risk of Xinjiang forced labor. Companies can and should do this tracing. They’re welcome to DM me & I’ll help… if they sign the #EndForcedLabourintheUyghurRegion pledge. https://enduyghurforcedlabour.org/
Read more about China's forced labor programs in East Turkestan/Xinjiang https://www.csis.org/analysis/connecting-dots-xinjiang-forced-labor-forced-assimilation-and-western-supply-chains
Read more about China's forced labor programs in East Turkestan/Xinjiang https://www.aspi.org.au/report/uyghurs-sale
Read more about China's forced labor programs in East Turkestan/Xinjiang https://osf.io/preprints/socarxiv/8tsk2/
