US Crackdown on Forced Labor in China Risks Further Supply Chaos
H/T: Joe Biden Hates Uygurs via Reports on China
Related:
Biden Officials Vow Forced Labor Crackdown on China Under US Import Ban
Australian think tank ASPI found linked to prison labor, human trafficking
US prison labor programs violate fundamental human rights, new report finds
China calls on intl community to investigate forced labor in US
The cotton shortage is only going to get worse, if they are already having problems sourcing cotton:
While several companies produce period products, Proctor and Gamble controls [has a monopoly on] nearly 50 percent of the market. The company makes a number of brands, including Tampax tampons and Always pads.
…
The small number of tampon manufacturers leaves the products with similar vulnerabilities to baby formula, said Anna Nagurney, a professor of supply chains and logistics at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
As with baby formula, only a small number of facilities manufacture period products, Nagurney said. “The major manufacturers each have one plant,” she said, adding that one is in Maine and the other in Delaware.
…
But the current situation is likely driven by issues such as the supply chain, climate change and the war in Ukraine [WTF?!], Nagurney said. “Obviously there are supply chain issues, but those are exacerbated by the impact of climate change on the raw materials needed for tampons and pads,” she added. “These products are made from cotton, rayon and plastics. We’ve had droughts in Texas, China and India, which are all major suppliers of cotton.”
There’s a Tampon Shortage, and Everything from Drought to War in Ukraine is to Blame
It’s hard to say exactly what’s going on here, but Time cites the typical supply chain issues. Procter & Gamble, which makes Tampax (the country’s most popular tampon brand), said in its most recent earnings call that it’s having difficulty sourcing raw materials for feminine care products like tampons and is also struggling to ship tampons to places that need them.
…
Women’s health expert Jennifer Wider, M.D., points out that this isn’t just a tampon thing, though. “There is a global supply chain issue affecting so many different products including baby formula, parts of automobiles, and even toilet paper,” she says. “Raw materials like cotton and plastic are in high demand—and this is why tampons are in a shortage.”
Yes, There’s a Tampon Shortage: Here’s Why—Plus, 4 Tampon Alternatives to Consider
Ms. Cat’s Chronicles 