LONDON/SAN FRANCISCO/BEIJING ¨C U.K. grocery giant Tesco PLC suspended its supply of Christmas cards from a Chinese factory and said it was investigating a newspaper report that prison labor was used in their production.
All the cards produced by the factory have been withdrawn from sale, Tesco said in a statement on Sunday. If the investigation shows a breach of the company¡¯s rule against using prison labor, the factory will be removed from Tesco¡¯s suppliers list ¡°immediately and permanently.¡±
The Sunday Times reported earlier that a 6-year-old girl from south London, Florence Widdicombe, discovered a note in her Tesco Christmas cards that read: ¡°We are foreign prisoners in Shanghai Qingpu Prison China. Forced to work against our will. Please help us and notify human rights organization.¡±
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