I find it frustrating that there is no requirement to inform the customer of the country of origin of a product when it is purchased online. I often times have no idea what country something was made in until it arrives at my doorstep and I open the box.
According to the Customs and Border Protection document “Marking of Country of Origin on U.S. Imports” the purpose of this marking is:
To inform the ultimate purchaser in the United States of the country in which the imported article was made… The ultimate purchaser is generally the last person in the United States who will receive the article in the form in which it was imported.
When you buy something from an online retailer you don’t get to see this marking until you’ve already made the purchase.
The intent of this law is not being met.
I agree, so I sent this to various government officials:
———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Tue, Oct 25, 2011 at 12:59 PM
Subject: Country of Origin for Online Vendors
To: TheSec@doc.gov
Although I shop frugally, even I am willing to spend more or buy a little less if it means I can buy a product made in the U.S.A., I’d also prefer to spend money on legitimate products made by our dear, desperate, and drug-infested neighbors in Mexico and other nearby countries rather than see all that money sent overseas. People with more money to spend would be even more likely to freely make these kinds purchasing decisions if only their awareness were heightened.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Country_of_origin#Country_of_origin_as_a_marketing_strategy
However, when we shop online, it’s almost impossible to find the country of origin for most products (e.g. Amazon.com). For all intents and purposes, online sales circumvent the rules of origin because the country of origin is concealed until the customer has already bought and received the product.
Please encourage or enforce online sellers to make country of origin visible to consumers while they shop online.
Thank you.
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“Remember when a dollar was worth a dime and not the nickel it’s worth today?” -em
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