Made in USA Chopsticks to Japan, China & Korea!

Yesterday, I was at a meeting of Japanese investment firms. They were talking about the difference between western ways and Japanese ways of investing in new companies and start-ups and how Chinese ways of business in this area are much like those of the United States.

There were many comments about the decline of the USA but one guy threw us a curve ball that was really interesting. During the meeting, one anecdote came up about how there is a town in the USA that is actually exporting chopsticks to Japan and China! 


I couldn't believe it, so I did a Google search this morning. Jeepers! It's true.


It's even in Time Magazine:

It seems everything we buy these days says “Made in China.” But millions of the Asian nation's iconic chopsticks are proudly made in the U.S.A.

Two hours south of Atlanta lies the source of millions of Chinese chopsticks. Who would have thought? It's hard to imagine a place more quintessentially red, white and blue – the town, nestled firmly in the heartland of Georgia, is called Americus.

And their luck runs as deep as their love for country: Americus has the ideal type of wood for making chopsticks. The abundant forests of poplar and sweet gum trees in the area strike the perfect balance between hardness and softness, making a comfortable yet sturdy eating utensil for many across the world.

What's more, the region is no stranger to wood harvesting, with pine manufacturers and paper corporations – think Georgia-Pacific – helping to ease the industry's barriers to entry.  Jae Lee created Georgia Chopsticks in November and is already producing 2 million chopsticks each day. They're selling their craft primarily to Chinese supermarkets but also are helping hungry people in Japan, Korea and the U.S.

So, I guess saying that the USA doesn't manufacture anything that other countries want to buy besides airplanes, missiles and bombs, the USA can still export a few lemons and a couple of other things to Japan and chopsticks to China!