CBP issued a withhold release order for imported hair products “made wholly or in part with hair products produced by Lop County Meixin Hair Product Co. Ltd. (Meixin) in Xinjiang, China,” CBP said in a news release. The WRO was issued due to suspicions of forced labor use and is effective as of June 17, CBP said. The agency issued a similar WRO in May on hair products made by another company in the region (see 2005010040).
CBP updated its withhold release order on tobacco from Malawi so “that tobacco imported from Malawi by Alliance One International, LLC will be admissible at all U.S. ports of entry effective June 3,” the agency said in an emailed news release. CBP issued the original WRO in 2019 (see 1911010026). CBP “modified the WRO based on a rigorous evaluation of Alliance One International’s social compliance program and efforts to identify and minimize the risks of forced labor from its supply chain,” it said. “These actions produced evidence that sufficiently supports Alliance One International’s claim that the tobacco produced and harvested from their farms does not use forced labor. The WRO continues to apply to imports of tobacco from Malawi by any company that has not demonstrated to CBP that there is no forced labor in its supply chain.”
CBP updated its withhold release order on gold mined in artisanal small mines so that “gold imported from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) by the Chambers Federation will be admissible at all U.S. ports of entry effective May 28,” the agency said in a news release. CBP issued the original WRO in 2019 (see 1910010017). CBP “modified the WRO based on a rigorous evaluation of the Chambers Federation’s due diligence program and work with various government and non-governmental organizations,” it said. “These actions produced evidence that sufficiently supports the Chambers Federation’s claim that the artisanal and small-scale mines in the DRC from which the Chambers Federation imports gold do not use forced labor.”
The number of withhold release orders for goods that are allegedly made with forced labor has climbed sharply in the last five years, and Columbia Sportswear's director of global customs and trade said importers should expect that trend to accelerate. Katie Tangman, who was speaking May 20 during the online convention of the National Association of Foreign-Trade Zones, said traders should expect other countries to pass import bans on goods made from forced labor. While the U.S. is the only country with such a law at this point, Mexico and Canada will be passing bans as part of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, she said, and pressure is building in the European Union to act, too.
President Donald Trump issued an executive order on May 15 that establishes a task force focused on forced labor issues under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. “The Task Force shall be chaired by the Secretary of Homeland Security and shall be composed of representatives from the Department of State, the Department of the Treasury, the Department of Justice, the Department of Labor, and the Office of the United States Trade Representative,” it said. “The Chair may invite representatives from other executive departments or agencies, as appropriate, to participate as members or observers.” House Democrats recently complained that the task forced hadn't been created by the required April 28 deadline (see 2005120035).
The Democratic members of the House Ways and Means Committee have told the leaders of CBP and the Department of Homeland Security that the failure to establish the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force by the April 28 deadline in statute is unacceptable.
CBP issued a withhold release order for “imported merchandise made wholly or in part with seafood harvested by the Yu Long No. 2, a Taiwanese flagged fishing vessel, at all U.S. ports of entry” CBP said in a news release. The WRO was issued due to suspicions of forced labor use and is effective as of May 11, CBP said. This WRO is the second order issued this month (see 2005010040).
New Jersey Democratic Rep. Bill Pascrell, who voted against the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, issued a statement complaining that the administration has not yet named the members of the forced labor enforcement task force, which was supposed to be formed by 90 days after the implementing bill's passage. The task force is meant to discuss active Withhold and Release Orders, investigations that could lead to WROs, petitions for investigations and forced labor enforcement priorities.
CBP issued a withhold release order for imported hair products “manufactured by Hetian Haolin Hair Accessories Co. Ltd. (Haolin), who operate in the Xinjiang region of China,” CBP said in a news release. The WRO was issued due to suspicions of forced labor use and is effective as of May 1, CBP said. The use of forced labor in the Xinjiang region has gotten new attention from lawmakers in recent months (see 2003180037).
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters: