US ban on imports made by forced labour


Editor's note: The US ban on import of products made with forced labour came into force in March 2016 and reporting to Congress on compliance is due in 180 days, so in September 2016.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection - Forced Labor: Section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. § 1307) prohibits the importation of merchandise mined, produced or manufactured, wholly or in part, in any foreign country by forced labor – including forced child labor. Such merchandise is subject to exclusion and/or seizure, and may lead to criminal investigation of the importer(s)..... CBP regulations state that any person who has reason to believe that merchandise produced by forced labor is being, or is likely to be, imported into the United States may communicate his belief to any Port Director or the Commissioner of CBP (19 C.F.R. § 12.42). This may be accomplished by submitting detailed information to CBP which satisfies the requirements of 19 C.F.R. § 12.42(b).
https://www.cbp.gov/trade/trade-community/programs-outreach/convict-importations


U.S. impounds PureCircle stevia under new forced labor law Jun 1, 2016 -- The companies have three months to prove the stevia was not produced by force labor, a spokeswoman for the U.S. agency said on Wednesday...."It is imperative that companies examine their supply chains to understand product sourcing and the labor used to generate their products," the agency Commissioner R. Gil Kerlikowske said in a statement. Responding to the news, Coke said its supplier had confirmed it had not received stevia produced by the accused Inner Mongolia company. Company policy prohibits the use of forced labor in its operations and supply chain, Coke said in an email.  The action is the latest sign that the new legislation, which bans imports of goods made by forced labor, could have a far-reaching impact on companies that buy ingredients from abroad as the United States pushes to improve transparency across global supply chains. The Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 was signed into law in February.  http://www.reuters.com/article/usa-stevia-imports-idUSL1N18T26J