Quote:
Originally Posted by WolfeMacleod
In order to be labeled "Made in USA", "all or virtually all" of it's components must also be made in USA.
Technically, I cannot call my guitar pickups "Made in USA" because the bobbins, magnet, and lower frame are made overseas.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Made_in_USA |
Technically, you are correct. I probably should have stated "some" in place of "a fair amount" above. However, it is a known practice to muddy the waters through the supply chain (which is muddied further if you are dealing in raw materials). For instance, if you contact a supplier requesting a part needed to assemble your product, you can state/request that it needs to be of US origin. They can then say "uh...yeah, sure it's made in the US" and you are clear to put that "Made in the USA" label on your finished product, without any further qualification. All because you made a "reasonable" effort to determine the origin of the parts used.
Also, the FTC standard of "virtually all" is vague and often abused. A company can/will make an unqualified claim, when it should be qualified (a qualified claim being where you actually state the fact that foreign content is present - such as "80% US Made" or "Made in the USA with Swiss components", etc.). That, combined with deceptive supply chain and other manufacturing practices, give some the (false) justification they need to slap that "Made in the USA" label on their products, even though it falls way outside of the intended definition/spirit of the law.
The other issue is that there is no approval process. You don't have to substantiate your "Made in the USA" claim (labeling/advertising/etc.) prior to using it. So, there are probably a number of small businesses that are using the label incorrectly due to ignorance of the standard, rather than deceptively. No excuse, but it happens I am sure.