Cotton Campaign » supply chain

LL Bean vows to exclude Uzbek cotton

admin — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 02:44:04 +0000

Duckboots back on the shopping list

Of all the companies named by the International Labor Rights Forum on this year’s Sweatshop Hall of Shame for the use of Uzbek cotton, LL Bean was the fastest to respond, and vowed to (eventually) exclude it from their supply chain. Let’s hope their follow through is as exhaustive as their initial response was rapid.

Read more on the ILRF blog here. If you buy LL Bean products, take time to let their corporate office know that this is important to you.

Following the trail of Uzbek cotton: taking names

admin — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:33:55 +0000

Where does the cotton go, and how can Western end-users avoid consuming it? This is a question that needs a lot more exploration. According to a recent press release, the cotton fair in Tashkent was a great success, pushing the slave-harvested commodity out and probably into goods that stock our shops. Reportedly, contracts were signed for over 600,000 tons of this year’s crop alone, and the list of attendees was the largest ever. Clearly, not everyone is getting the message.

Fergana.ru published the list (see it reproduced below) of those attending the conference. It is an interesting document for many reasons, a few of which are highlighted here:

First, it gives manufacturers and retailers some hard data to aid the process of tracing potential Uzbek cotton in their supply chains, a process which is ongoing;
Secondly, it underlines the degree to which large Western commodities firms (Paul Reinhart, Louis Dreyfus, Cargill among others) continue to feel immune from any kind of shame in profiting from the misery and exploitation of children, four years after the International Crisis Group brought it to their direct attention, and in the face of a mountain of evidence in the intervening years. Among the newer intermediaries, the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre was well represented, too. Last year it was reported to have sold 200,000 tons of Uzbek cotton, a fairly big chunk of the harvest;
Thirdly, it sheds a tiny sliver of light on the actors who may be financing/insuring these transactions, and therefore also partaking in the wealth created by child exploitation. AIG Insurance and the Royal Bank of Scotland should explain their presence at the fair in this regard;
Lastly, it indicates the increasingly heavy presence of spinners and textile manufacturers, especially from Turkey, Bangladesh and Pakistan, who may be obtaining the cotton directly.

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Companies that get it: the Gap

admin — Fri, 22 May 2009 02:25:47 +0000

This site will spotlight the growing handful of companies worldwide that reject the use of cotton produced with forced child labor in Uzbekistan. Thankfully for my family’s buying habits, this includes the Gap, which states on its website:

Cotton from Uzbekistan

Under no circumstances is it acceptable for child labor to be used in the production of any Gap Inc. product. As a company, we’ve been particularly concerned by reports of children working in Uzbek cotton fields. To address this issue, Gap Inc. is working in partnership with a coalition of organizations, including As You Sow Foundation, the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the International Labor Rights Forum (ILRF).

In 2008, we took measures to exclude Uzbek cotton from our merchandise and notified our vendors and mills that the use of Uzbek cotton is prohibited in the production of our merchandise. In 2009, we’re taking our commitment a step further and implementing a pilot tracking program to continue our focus on doing what’s right.

http://www.gapinc.com/public/SocialResponsibility/sr_enviro_design.shtml