Made in The USA Discrepancies Found at Walmart

The “Made in The USA” stickers commonly seen on products can drive consumers to pay more for domestic goods, but some are warning that the practice can be deceptive.

Madison-based advertising watchdog Truth in Advertising found that a number of products on Walmart’s website were accompanied by “Made In USA” stickers despite being manufactured in foreign countries like China.

The non-profit found that products including eye liner, beauty wedge applicators, and tooth whitening supplies had been labeled as “Made in the USA” despite coming from other countries.

“The largest retailer in the world should have made sure its American-made claims were accurate before affixing “Made in USA” labels on its products,” said Bonnie Patten, executive director of TINA. “Until Walmart cleans up this mess, consumers should be cautious when shopping on the site.”

Walmart Director of National Media Relations Kory Lundberg said that the labels were a result of coding errors.

“We are undertaking a more extensive quality assurance review to help eliminate these coding errors,” he said. “Based on our initial internal review, we believe these errors are limited to a small percentage of items and we are confident in the overall integrity of the information on our website.”

He added that Walmart is two years into a 10-year plan to buy $250 billion worth of products that support American jobs and that some manufacturers have moved production back to the United States as a result.

Walmart uses a number of similar stickers for its USA products. They include Made in the USA, Made in the USA with over 90 percent parts, over 75 percent parts, over 50 percent parts and Assembled in the USA. Other companies have similar labeling, Patten said.

“Walmart labels are a perfect example because they all look the same,” she said.

TINA typically approaches companies first with concerns and then tracks their progress to remedy a situation, Patten said. If a company doesn’t resolve issues it will forward the matter to state or federal regulators.

They will keep an eye on Walmart’s online system, she said.

The Federal Trade Commission has strict laws for companies that use the “Made in USA” label. It requires that all or virtually all of a product be made in the USA to use that claim without a qualifier.

A product like a gold ring that bears a “Made in USA” claim and has imported gold would likely be a violation, the FTC states on its website. The gold is only one step back in the process from the finished product.

Something like a plastic alarm clock could still qualify even if the petroleum used to make plastic came from another country because it is many steps removed from the finished product.

Image courtesy from Truth in Advertising