The rapid growth of the Chinese manufacturing and processing scene coupled with lack of government controls raises health and safety concerns for not only US consumers, but also the Chinese workers. Unions and US worker safety organizations, such as OSHA, came out of the intolerable conditions at the turn of the century in US factories. And, yet we turn our backs to the similar conditions faced by workers in China and other developing countries.

Rather than jumping for joy when we find killer deals at places like Target, Wal-Mart or your favorite department store, we should instead question how exactly a T-shirt was manufactured for only $8 or a pillow for a measly $7. If you cannot make it at home for twice the price, you certainly should not be able to buy it for less! During the Year of the Recall, Americans were surprised by the numerous recalls of a wide variety of products from food stuffs to toys.

Should we really have been surprised? We demand cheap goods, so we force companies to move manufacturing off shore, so that they can get cheap resources and even cheaper labor. We ask people with little training to do work in intolerable conditions, in countries which lack government regulations and standards for safety and quality control. No, the recalls should not come as a surprise, because it costs money to ensure quality. It costs money to pay fair wages and it costs money to buy proper materials that were not mined, or raised or manufactured without a thought for the environment or the health of the workers.

Have you ever noticed stickers that say “Assembled in China” or “Assembled in Mexico of USA Made parts?” One of the most overlooked and very un-green aspects of the manufacture or processing of goods in China is that the raw or base materials for many of these products are still made or grown in the US. For example, company X wants to cut costs to compete with company Y, so they move their manufacturing process to China. Manufacturing in China is so cheap that company X can still manufacture its precision parts in the US, ship them to China for assembly and then ship the completed product back to the US for sale. Company X’s product makes two petroleum based trips across the pacific, before being shipped to its final destination in the US.

A very surprising example of a food stuff that is harvested in the US and Canada, but then shipped to China for processing is crab meat. Apparently, crab processing in the US is expensive and so to sell crab for a competitive price in the US, some of the crab harvested in the Pacific North West, is now shipped to China for processing and then shipped back for sale in the US market. So, the next time you buy crab meat that advertises being from the Puget Sound or Alaska think twice. That crab may have just made a transoceanic trip, prior to coming to its resting place on your plate. At this time the US does not import chicken or beef from China, because their processing facilities have not met US standards, and yet the processing of crab and other sea food is common.

I have chosen to pick on China, because China is the biggest player I can single out in the global market. Nevertheless, China is not the only player and so, when we make purchases we should be cognizant of the conditions in which that individual product was made and consider whether or not we should support unethical and un-green business with our purchase.

With a side of humor, this very serious little video says it all:
The Story of Stuff