DianeK brought up an interesting point in another thread that I thought deserved a thread of it's own.

It's really fascinating to see how "international" manufacturing has become to the point where every level of the supply chain could come from a different country.

There are American mattress manufacturers who "put the layers together" in America and yet every part of their mattress is from elsewhere. In some cases they proudly state "Made in America"

There are American manufacturers who either partly or wholly own factories in China or India and build mattresses to "American specs" using "American ingredients" and yet they are not "Made in America"

There are Chinese manufacturers who are certified by various agencies that hold them and their quality to a higher standard than American manufacturers who are not.

There are Chinese manufacturers who represent the "worst of the worst"

The above also applies to European and Asian manufacturers as well.

And every conceivable combination of the above exists somewhere.

Every manufacturing decision also affects the ultimate price a consumer pays in many different ways (raw materials, labor, transportation)

So my question is ... What does "made in North America" (US, Canada) really mean?

Is it about the raw materials, final construction, labor used, manufacturing standards?

And how important are all of these and the many different variations that are out there to the people on this forum?

Phoenix

I think its important to know where every individual component comes from.  Where the raw materials come from, where it is manufactured, and then where it is assembled.  I am still not sure if I can find an attractive way to display it as I am no graphic artist but a year ago  I began mapping out on google maps all the different locations on the globe that I knew our suppliers were importing product from and where the factories are located.  Once I actually got a good chunk of what we do on the map I realized we primarily deal North American and European, and a good chunk of business from Malaysia and Sri Lanka for rubber and coconut coir. 

Some products we have to get from china, silk fill duvets and electric motors for adjustable foundations.  Other than the cheapest latex and memory foam around I dont think there is too much upholstery actually being made in China for mattresses over here.  Although fabrics for mattresses is a hell of a lot harder to track.  Most of what is sold is cheap polyester coverings that could be made anywhere and we just never really know.