Upon my desk is a computer monitor and there is a small television just to the left on the return. This enables me to easily consume all sorts of media.
It does though on occasion present an interesting juxtaposition of information.
I recently clicked a news link when I heard the words “The fastest train in the world” which prompted me to shift my eyes to the left to watch the following commercial:
I did not react well to that commercial. I am old enough now that I will speak aloud to the television which as a child I always perceived as peculiar adult behavior. I told my television the following:
“Who are these iShare idiots that think I should invest in China?” “I got a country right here, the good ol’ U.S. of A that could use some investment.” “Doesn’t China get enough U.S. dollars?” “Let’s keep our own dollars and build the fastest train in the world right here!”
Ah, another innovative product made in China - exploding watermelons. We have nothing like that in the U.S. Our watermelons, while delicious are unexciting because they just sit there waiting to be sliced and eaten.
Wouldn’t exploding watermelons be perfect for 4th of July celebrations? We could place a few out in the yard after the barbecue, then place bets on which one will explode first. That might make a nice intro for the nearby fireworks display.
Now while some consumers might like a watermelon that explodes after they purchase it, they don't appear to have any desire to purchase one that already exploded. So these watermelon growers in China have thus far succeeded in producing nothing more than fish food. I think though that if they can perfect the timing of the explosion - they'll be on to something.
The article reminds us of some other Chinese cost cutting innovations including rice with cadmium, milk with melamine, soy sauce with arsenic, mushrooms with bleach and pork with borax.
Yumm.
Today, as I was contemplating writing this post, I learned that another new road collapsed in China. After all, why build roads that function for decades when you can build roads to function only for a few years? The roadway does not appear to be situated near any watermelon fields, so I suspect that inferior concrete or steel is to blame for the collapse. I am certain the collapse can be explained by yet another Chinese cost cutting innovation.
Collapsing roads in China reminded me of the buildings in China that experience difficulty remaining in a vertical position. Watch any toddler long enough and you'll see that they too at times have difficulty remaining on their feet. Yes, gravity is a powerful force.
It's very easy to understand why the media in China is very tightly controlled by the Chinese government. Just imagine what is not reported...
From the iShare commercial – “China is evolving.”
Okay, at what point in time does China evolve into a country that can overcome the force of gravity and master what must be the fine art of growing watermelons that can't be confused with landmines?
Consumers who carefully check the origin of foods in their local markets, including organic foods, are more often discovering "Product of China" on the packages. Permit me to tell you a bit about food production in China so you can better determine if there is reason for concern.
Farms operate under the strictest guidelines. Foods may not be genetically modified and must meet international food standards.
Organic tea comes from the foothills of Tibet and is fresh, tender and flavorful. On the grasslands of Inner Mongolia hormone-free beef is produced. Rice is grown from specially cultivated seeds by experts from the Jilin Academy of Agricultural Sciences and is watered by the melted mountain snow of Mt. Changbai.
These food products, which meet the highest standards are certified and stamped with a “Nation A” label.
That sounds fine, doesn’t it? Is that the organic food that's exported to the U.S.?
No, silly.
Is that the food that is available to the Chinese people?
No silly, I’ve been describing the special food supply, reserved for high level Chinese officials.
Are you now wondering why important officials in China might want and need their own secure and restricted food supply? Are you wondering that if the absolute best, safest and finest food products are reserved for the Chinese elite, then what grade food is exported to the U.S.?
I'll address those questions.
Let me tell you about one basic food product that is made in China – cooking oil. (You may find the following information somewhat indelicate.)
Restaurants in China have waste tanks and cooking oil is siphoned from the raw sewage in those waste tanks. That tainted oil is then refined and resold.
As you would expect such an oil product contains toxins namely carcinogenic Aflatoxins. Since tainted and toxic recycled sewage oil sells for one half the price of untainted oil, oil producers in China blend the toxic oil with uncontaminated oil to increase their profit margins.
China consumes about 22.5 million tons of cooking oil per year which includes about 2 to 3 million tons of waste oil.
If this is what is produced in China for the consumption of the Chinese people, how much care do you suppose is taken with products that are exported to the U.S.? In 2008 China experienced a problem with melamine in dairy products. (Melamine mimics protein when tested.) A few children died and hundreds of thousands suffered from kidney disorders. Recently, the problem arose again and Chinese authorities seized about 64 tons of raw dairy materials.
Farmers in China feed their dairy cows low quality feed. That inferior feed leads to low levels of protein in the milk, hence the introduction of melamine so the milk will meet the required minimum protein level.
Despite prohibitions of melamine in dairy products, dairy producers still use melamine. You can see that the authorities in China have a problem.
So, how might the authorities in China address the problem?
Hmmm…
Since it occurs to no one in China that perhaps dairy cows need better feed so their milk will contain more protein, the Chinese government has instead lowered the minimum protein level for dairy products to discourage the use of melamine.
See, the problem is all fixed.
At this point I have to admit, that as an American manufacturer I would never have conceived such a remedy for this problem, never.
The U.S. and China both produce chicken, yet China imports chicken from the U.S. and we import chicken from China. At a glance that seems ridiculous until you consider that there must be a material difference in the products from both countries.
Do you suppose that the U.S. produced chicken qualifies for a "Nation A" label?
When you shop your local market and you stumble upon food products, including organics, that are a product of China, you are also likely to notice the familiar USDA logo as well as other logos on the packaging.
Shouldn’t you, the consumer be able to find certainty and peace of mind in the certifications you find on packaging?
That would be nice but it’s not exactly possible and I’ll explain. The USDA inspects food that is produced in the U.S. but it does not inspect imported foods. Unfortunately, the USDA certifies private inspection companies which may not be located in the U.S. Those companies may or may not certify food products from China. If they don’t inspect food in China which is possible and likely, then they rely on the certification from an inspector – wait for it – located on the farms themselves in China. And those inspectors are paid by whom? That inspector certifies the supposedly organic products to the middleman who certifies the supposedly organic products to the USDA and everyone’s logo and certification goes onto the packaging. This is the process which enables everyone in the chain from the farmer in China to your grocer to pretend that a food product from China is safe and possibly organic. This brings me to a recent email I received from a visitor to our site. From time to time I receive emails from folks who wish to share with me, their displeasure of foreign made products. I read the emails, nod in agreement and reply. The writer shared with me information about a fine fresh food product, found in my own refrigerator but the producer unfortunately licensed their brand name to another company who exports the U.S. product to China. Goodness knows I most certainly support U.S. exports, so this isn't necessarily unwise, except in this situation. The food product is then supposedly made into candy and shipped back to the U.S. packaged with a familiar and trusted brand name. The person who wrote to me had sound concerns about what possible contaminants could be introduced in China during the candy making process while I wondered if U.S. product ever actually made it into the candy. A food product suitable for my own refrigerator is one I consider “Nation A” grade. Mary - web person for FindUSMade.com
This country may be in danger It could be losing something we can’t afford to lose.
Once in this country when a man produced a product it was the best he could possibly make
He stood behind it With pride
He lived a simple idea Do it right or don’t do it at all
Nobody told him that No government agency dictated it
And it built a standard of living For the world to aim at
Now that idea is threatened By shod, the second rate
To some it means quick riches
To some it means quick death Of the standards we have built
Some are fighting this threat
Whirlpool Corporation believes in one simple idea To continue to design, build and service home appliances The right way, with pride, so you can live with them comfortably for years Or they will not build them at all
If we can’t keep this simple idea alive Then indeed we are the endangered species. ___________________________________________________
Countless times as a child, I heard the message from both my parents, “do it right or don’t do it at all.” I was raised on that philosophy just as I suspect were many Americans. I agree with the message in the above advertisement even if I lack that particular level of testosterone. Yes, Americans worked hard, produced the best products possible and built a standard of living for the balance of the world to strive to achieve. Whirlpool Corporation, like myself perceived a threat to this country from “the second rate.”
Today, the difference between Whirlpool Corporation and myself is that I maintain my ideals not unlike the many thousands of American manufacturers we list on our site.
Once upon a time, Whirlpool Corporation had a fine reputation due to their innovation & dedication to quality. Today their concern is cost cutting - not innovation, quality or keeping alive a “simple idea.”
Whirlpool announced that they will close their plant in Evansville, Indiana and move production of their top mount refrigerators to Mexico next year demonstrating again that Whirlpool now embraces what it once recognized as a threat.
From their August 28, 2009 press conference:
"While Evansville has most certainly had the best quality, it has not been competitive in terms of cost and asset utilization for some time. That combined with a decrease in demand for top mount refrigerators, aggressive new global competitors and the continued effects of a recessionary economy, are requiring Whirlpool, like many companies, to take unprecedented steps to help ensure that it remains competitive."
Please note that Whirlpool acknowledges that their Evansville plant has the best quality and they are willing to sacrifice that quality for other concerns. Whirlpool also states that this recessionary economy contributed to their decision to move production. That recessionary economy is the very same one that the thousands of manufacturers we list on our site navigate and persevere yet proves too difficult for Whirlpool. I’m smiling now thinking my own company must be better managed than Whirlpool Corporation.
Two other things struck me in that paragraph from their press conference. The use of the word “requiring” implies that this decision was the result of having no other choice, or that some external entity is forcing them to close this plant. If those who manage Whirlpool Corporation lack an understanding of corporate responsibility, they likely also lack an understanding of personal responsibility.
There is also the phrase “like many companies,” as though no one need take this decision personally or think ill of Whirlpool since they are just one of many companies moving production and are actually part of a trend - m’kay?
I can tell you about a trend - in lean manufacturing, something many companies are pursuing and utilizing enabling them to better compete in the marketplace. By comparison, Whirlpool established committees to explore such techniques. Those committees meet regularly and discuss what other companies are actually busy implementing.
Okay, so Whirlpool Corporation is not exactly trend setting or cutting edge. They needed to cut costs so the first thing, or the second thing they considered, after establishing committees was to move production to a low wage country. Or perhaps it wasn’t the first thing they considered.
Perhaps they reviewed their entire operation and business model. Perhaps they reviewed their levels of management and compensation packages. Perhaps they studied each and every one of their expenses and made all prudent cuts eliminating all waste. Perhaps they engaged with their workforce and implemented the ideas and suggestions from the very people who daily have their hands on product. Perhaps they are truly operating as effectively and efficiently as possible - honest to goodness running lean & mean and is still reduced to moving production to Mexico.
Which scenario strikes you as more likely?
The Whirlpool press conference also noted "unprecedented steps" which confuses me since Whirlpool had already closed some plants in the US and moved production to Mexico. There doesn’t seem to be anything unprecedented about this type of production move, it’s just another step that indicates Whirlpool’s inability to innovate and compete. I would though categorize as “unprecedented steps” the occasion when Whirlpool moved some production from Mexico back to the US because of a high failure rate in those particular foreign made appliances.
The average person may believe that highly paid/compensated individuals, well educated and with experience, such as those who run large corporations, certainly must know what they are doing.
Pause for a moment and consider our bankers…
Couldn’t you make better decisions? Give it a try. Come sit in the big chair in the large office on the top floor. You need to cut costs for your company. You can continue to manufacture in the US with your skilled experienced workforce and cut other costs. Trust me on this - if you are blessed with a capable, highly trained & experienced workforce, you have one heck of an asset! Then, if you manage a company well, you can make some real money.
Or, you can move production to northern Mexico, incurring some freight costs and hassles at the border. You leave behind the most productive workers in the world, American workers trading for low wage workers. That cuts wage costs but you’ll have higher, ongoing training costs due to the high attrition rate in the Mexican workforce. You’ll trade the infrastructure in the US for the infrastructure in Mexico. You’ll operate in a country with drug cartels with armed thugs that number as large as the Mexican military. Consider also that those drug cartels sometimes extort “protection” money from US companies.
You might also consider the growing desire for US made goods by American consumers and their growing dissatisfaction with imported products. Now consider that my own company is operating in this recessionary economy and I made cuts in our costs, none of which had any impact whatsoever on product or workers. My approach was to cut fat, not meat.
What would be your approach?
That’s what I thought. See, you would do well seated in the big chair in the office on the top floor.
When companies can so easily and readily abandon manufacturing here for manufacturing elsewhere, there really isn’t a framework in place to compel companies to focus on themselves and their products so they can improve, advance & innovate, is there? They can simply trot off to another country with their same poor practices, inefficiencies, behaviors & imprudent management decisions. They can readily preserve the “fat” in their companies while sacrificing the “meat.” The consumer is not well served in such an environment.
As a consumer, would you purchase the refrigerator that was built by Americans with decades of experience or would you buy the refrigerator built by a person with perhaps months of experience if they lasted that long on the job?
Whirlpool is moving production to Mexico supposedly so they can better compete with new global competitors, correct? So consumers can expect a decrease in the price of those top mount refrigerators that will be made in Mexico, correct? Now if the price remains stable, we’ll know that Whirlpool simply enlarged their profit margin, won’t we? And they only had to sacrifice quality and over 1,000 American jobs to accomplish that feat.
We’ve all been to this rodeo, haven’t we?
Whirlpool Corporation has many divisions and still manufactures some brands in the US such as KitchenAid products. I have no confidence in their dedication to US manufacturing so their product lines sit on our watch list. Personally, I would still purchase those US made brands, placing greater faith in American workers than I do in the management personnel of Whirlpool Corporation.
It’s pitiful and sad to me to see a once great company falter and fail with their best days behind them.
Sadly, Whirlpool Corporation is unable to keep a simple idea alive.
“Do it right or don’t do it at all,” as my parents would say…
Please visit our site to browse and shop the companies who can compete
We're delighted to share this information from a recent email. Trenway Textiles was contacted about the origin of their products. They replied explaining that for a time, some of their products were manufactured abroad. They found themselves dissatisfied however with the quality of the products and they've returned to manufacturing their entire line of socks in the USA.
FindUSMade.comis a comprehensive consumer built shopper friendly guide & resource for U.S. made consumer products.
Our 25 categorized departments list thousands of locations for U.S. made products.
We also list 17 online malls filled exclusively with only Made in the USA goods. We’ve listed dozens of searchable directories as well as many other online resources. By combining for the consumer these varied options, we hope to produce a powerful tool to enable shoppers to easily locate goods that are Made in the USA.
I am Mary, an American manufacturer and a consumer who has been buying Made in the USA products for the past 30 years. I am acting as the web person for Find US Made.com. (One member of our group is a tech expert and his skills are utilized when necessary.) I will usually be the one to update this blog about matters related to our site. We hope to create ease for our fellow consumers who seek goods & wares Made in the USA. Find US Made.com will remain apolitical to better serve our goal.
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