Nestlé cuts ties with a company in the Uyghur region of Xinjiang. Rieter only wants to make clarifications. But this is not possible on the spot, says a non-governmental organization.
They are picked up from villages, taken to mass shelters and forced to work in cotton fields. This is the reality for many Uyghurs in the western Chinese region of Xinjiang. At least 570,000 people work under duress in the cotton fields, estimates renowned Xinjiang researcher Adrian Zenz in a study published in mid-December.
Forced labor is only one way the Chinese regime oppresses the Uyghurs. The other is interning Uyghurs in re-education camps. According to the China Cables published in late 2019, Beijing holds one to three million Uyghurs in such camps, depending on estimates.
The revelations have led to a rethink internationally. The U.S. has blacklisted several companies in Xinjiang over the past year. Since January 13, there has also been a ban on imports of tomatoes and cotton from Xinjiang. It is also forbidden to import products manufactured elsewhere with raw materials from the Uyghur region.
And Switzerland? China is the world's third most important trading partner after the European Union and the USA. Local companies are also active in Xinjiang. Some have drawn conclusions from the revelations. Others continue to do business.
Nestlé: No more products from Xinjiang
For the first time, food giant Nestlé confirms that it has sourced tomato concentrate from the Xinjiang-based state-owned company Cofco Tunhe. That's over now: "We made the decision some time ago not to source any more products from Xinjiang," says a Nestlé spokesman. He does not want to comment further on the decision. As a source confirms, Nestlé already cut business ties with Cofco Tunhe in the second quarter of 2020. The decision was probably also a direct reaction to the China Cables revelations, the source says.
Rieter is still active in Xinjiang. According to its own website, the Winterthur-based textile machinery manufacturer supplies spinning machines to the two textile companies Aksu Huafu Textiles Co and Changji Esquel Textile Co. Both companies have publicly denied using Uyghur forced laborers. However, a report by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute comes to the opposite conclusion, as does the US government: it has placed the companies on the blacklist. read more