U.S. Customs and Border Protection has lifted an import ban on garments produced by Natchi Apparel Ltd. in India. As a result, shipments of such goods will be allowed to enter U.S. commerce (provided they are otherwise in compliance with U.S. law) and shipments that have previously been detained will be released.
Customs and Border Protection of the US issued a withhold release order against garments from Natchi in late July but now states that this company and others have provided evidence that all five of the International Labour Organization indicators of forced labour identified in the WRO have been addressed.
U.S. law prohibits the importation of goods mined, produced, or manufactured, wholly or in part, in any foreign country by forced labour, including convict, indentured, and forced child labour. Enforcement of this prohibition is on the rise, including Withhold Release Orders (WRO) and shipment detentions.
It is therefore no longer enough for importers to know the conditions of manufacture only back to their tier one suppliers; instead, they need to have complete supply chain transparency all the way back to the point of extraction, growth, or original input creation. Importers should be taking affirmative steps to ensure compliance and manage risk. Exporters to the United States should take affirmative steps to ensure compliance and manage risk to avoid huge losses.
