WASHINGTON — The National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) fully endorsed a letter from the country’s leading American flag manufacturer to Amazon Founder and Executive Chairman Jeff Bezos, imploring him to stop the suspected sale of unlabeled and deceptively labeled Chinese-made American flags on his company’s online marketplace.
In the letter, Carter Beard, president of Annin Flagmakers, a 178-year-old American flag manufacturer employing more than 500 workers, estimates that more than 100,000 unlabeled U.S. flags valued at $1.5 million are actually made in China and sold every month on Amazon in violation of a U.S. statute requiring a country of origin label.
Based on sample products purchased and industry knowledge, Beard states the industry believes third-party sellers on Amazon are selling “Made in China” U.S. flags and “not labeling them per the laws of the United States,” employing deceptive marketing schemes and illegal practices to mislead consumers.
See the full letter here.
“The industry stands united in supporting this letter from Annin Flagmakers and the entire flag industry,” said NCTO President and CEO Kim Glas. “The suspected sale of unlabeled or falsely labeled flags on Amazon and other e-commerce platforms hurts the American flag industry and textile industry, which has lost 27 plants over the past 20 months due to a flood of cheap, falsely labeled, unlabeled products and subsidized imports. That is why it is imperative that Amazon and other online marketplaces act immediately to stop any illegal labeling and deceptive advertising by Chinese companies that are duping American consumers who take pride in displaying authentic American-made flags. These suspected illegal actions are severely harming the strategic and critical American flag and textile industries, which employ hundreds of thousands of workers across the United States and produce flags and thousands of items for the U.S. military, PPE and consumer and industrial markets.”
Posted: February 20, 2025
Source: The National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO)
