The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced Friday that it has blocked 43 Chinese companies from importing products into the United States due to allegations of forced labor practices. The action marks the largest single-day enforcement action against goods produced with forced labor in recorded history, according to DHS.
Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin stated that the companies are accused of using "slave labor" in China. The Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force, an entity dedicated to identifying and rooting out goods made with unethical labor, was instrumental in identifying this group of companies.
"The Trump Administration remains steadfast in its commitment to remove forced labor from U.S. supply chains and to holding foreign companies accountable for their exploitation,” said DHS Under Secretary for Strategy, Policy, & Plans Rob Law, who also chairs the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force.
The targeted companies operate in various sectors, including aluminum, apparel, copper, cotton, and tomato production. Among those identified are Kuitun Yadasi Textile Co. and Xinjiang Nuziline Bio-Pharmaceutical Co.
DHS considers the blocking of these companies a matter of national security, emphasizing the importance of preventing "illicit goods" from entering the U.S. market and holding companies accountable for labor violations.
The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA), established in 2021, bans goods from China's Xinjiang region and requires companies to provide proof that they are not using Uyghur labor. With the addition of these 43 entities, there are now 187 companies on the UFLPA Entity List.
"We are uncompromising in the continued prevention of unfair practices that undermine American businesses -- expansion of the UFLPA Entity List is a tool by which DHS can ensure both our economic and national security," Law added. ABC News has reached out to the Chinese embassy for comment.