Online fast-fashion retailer Shein requires its contract manufacturers to only source cotton from approved regions, which do not include China, for products it sells in the United States, its biggest market, the company said on Friday.
Approved cotton sources include Australia, Brazil, India, the United States and, “in limited cases”, certain countries in Europe, Middle East and Africa, and Southeast Asia, Shein said in written evidence to a British parliamentary committee inquiry published on Friday.
Shein said this requirement is for its compliance with the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, legislation intended to ban products made by forced labour in China from entering the United States.
Shein has faced allegations that its products contain cotton from China’s Xinjiang province, where the U.S. and NGOs have accused the Chinese government of forced labour and human rights abuses. Beijing denies any abuses.
Shein, which sells in 150 markets worldwide, said its supplier code of conduct prohibiting forced labour also applies, regardless of the country its products are sold in.
Shein did not specify whether its rules on approved cotton sources applied to other markets, such as the UK, where it is planning a London listing.
A senior lawyer at Shein presented oral evidence at a parliamentary hearing on Jan. 7 but declined to answer lawmakers’ questions about Shein’s use of cotton from China, with committee chair Liam Byrne saying her response bordered on contempt of the committee.
