WalMart and Claims of Inaccurate "Made In the USA" labeling- What's the Real Situation?

What is the situation with Walmart and Made In the USA Claims?  And why does this matter?  

I am a big believer in Made in the USA and in local manufacturing generally. Why?  As much as I believe in many cases in the power of efficiencies and the global economy, it’s also the case that there are great benefits to smaller economic circles and cycles.    

First, local manufacturing just feels right ethically.  It’s fair for communities to benefit with jobs and resources from the materials and “ingredients” and products and processes found, created, and/or used locally.  Why should people go without jobs and still be elected to buy things so that someone across the world can produce something more cheaply?  We can still care about everyone but act more fairly to each community.  

Second, local manufacturing is the right thing to do for the environment.  We simply can not be shipping ingredients and materials across the world to be processed, further processed, and packaged, and then bring back all that way again for use.  It’s not necessary, and it’s terribly inefficient if one assigns any value to natural capital.  

Third, I believe that local manufacturing is good for any area or nation’s food and product security.  If everything is made somewhere else, what happens when there’s a major weather or other event?  Now, in all your smartness to save a little on factory wages and maybe in so doing ruin the planet a little more, you all the sudden can’t even get what you need, companies are ruined anyway, and people don’t get what they need.  Let’s take the long view and plan for disaster.  With climate change risks becoming more clear, we’re in for some disruptions anyway.

Ok, so clearly I would be a fan of Made In the USA programs.  And I am verging on very upset with WalMart when I hear they are saying one thing and doing another.  So, I want to hear from WalMart what’s going on.  I want to give this giant company a chance to speak before I decide if I am upset.  Why?  Because I also worry about the way we use media moments to accuse people and companies of things before we know the facts.  I also worry about terms like “greenwashing” that get thrown around so carefully.  These terms and situations have consequences that can also affect people and their jobs and the environment.  We need to now who to get and trust good information rather then being all sensationalist.

All the time, company tell me they want to be more green, but they need to see demand and they worry about how to develop green products and “not be perfect yet” while avoiding people accusing them of being fake.  So I know it’s not always easy to be green and make green items as well.  It’s a scary landscape, as many companies work to do better but also worry about the risk of missteps and disinterest.  Remember, these companies also have employees and investors they report to, and when they do good we should encourage them more and buy and buy into the progress.  Or, they may decide it’s not worth it.  And that’s not an ok outcome.  

So, WalMart - Are you out there?  Let us know what happened.  I am reading that Truth In Advertising found numerous examples of inaccurate labels, and I am now seeing questions on PR Newswire, Reuters, HFN, Consumerist, Jesse Jones, and elsewhere.  So is this an honest example of a few items gone wrong?  If so, what is your responsibility and effort to get this right?  How big is this problem And, what are you doing to make sure it doesn't happen again?

Please take care to make labels like “Made in the USA” and other like “Environmentally friendly” truly meaningful, so we can trust them.  I work for expanding trust and information in the green building industry, which includes where and how many items are made.  We all have to do our part to transform to a more sustainable and just economy - and that means truth and accuracy and transparency in labeling and claims.  So I do think this is a pretty big responsibility.  

Allison Friedman