I work for a food importing company that imports from China, as well as India, Vietnam, Brazil, Malaysia, Thailand and a few other countries. Most of the items we import (such as cashews, pumpkinseeds, pine nuts, etc.) either aren't produced in the US or are not produced in sufficient volume for the domestic market - so they would have to be imported whatever the case if we want to consume them. It's an oversimplification to just single out all Chinese imports as 'bad'. There are excellent suppliers in China who are truly concerned about delivering quality products, as there are in the other countries I mentioned. There are also very low quality suppliers who are not concerned with quality, only with keeping their costs as low as possible and that can mean compromising safety, cleanliness, fair treatment for workers, etc.

But - guess which shippers are supported by most of the American importing community. It's the companies with the lowest prices that get the business, low prices made possible by low quality, lax safety standards, poor worker treatment.... A rough average difference between a top cashew shipper and a questionable shipper would be around $.10 per lb. Most of our customers won't pay that difference. They won't even pay a $.04 difference. The lowest priced supplier gets the business. And in many cases the buyer will throw out a low bid, and in order to get that business the supplier has to squeeze even more to make it work - most likely compromising the quality even more. We try to persuade customers that it's better to receive good quality from the get go than deal with the infestation, breakage, etc. that can result from poor facilities at origin (not to mention the fact that exploited child or prison labor may have been used) but I can assure you it is a hard sell. Quality doesn't sell. Cheap sells.

In order to differentiate between the shippers we set up a not for profit organization to inspect and certify facilities, which also offers a tracking system so the product can be traced from origin to consumer shelf. There is a $.04 upcharge for the inspection and tracking. We also donate a portion of the profits to an organization called Children, Inc. , an organization that has the infrastructure to fund programs for children whose families are employed in the cashew industry. Very few companies are interested - they don't want to pay the $.04 that it would cost to inspect and track. Here's a link to our program www.cashewconcern.com . One company that came aboard immediately is Feridies . When we showed them the pictures of high quality cashew facilites vs the cheap ones, they signed up immediately. This is a small family company that cares.   Keep them in mind if you order nuts for the holidays, and drop them a line to let them know that you appreciate someone with a social conscience and attention to quality.

We can't just point the finger at China - we must look at our own complicity in what is being imported. By "our own complicity" I'm talking about American businesses. Importers need to monitor the facilities they are importing from, and it may cost a little extra. I know that's hard to take in this economy, but frankly it's a little more expensive to maintain a clean, safety oriented facility with decently paid workers than to just provide a huge open courtyard where underpaid and often underaged workers sit on the floor and shell nuts next to a garbage dump. The only way to change things is for consumers to start demanding accountability and traceability.