FTC Drops Investigation of Office Depot for False 'Made in USA' Claims
The Federal Trade Commission has dropped an investigation of Office Depot for making misleading “Made in USA” claims, it said in a letter to the company dated April 13 (here). The FTC said Office Depot failed to remove U.S.-origin claims from its website after it moved production of its private brand desks overseas. The FTC dropped the investigation after Office Depot implemented a “remedial action plan to correct its representations and avoid future mislabeling,” it said.
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According to the FTC, Office Depot admitted to the violations in a letter sent in early April. The letter also detailed the company’s compliance plan, including removing inaccurate claims from its website reviewing catalogues, signage, packaging and social media content to ensure the accuracy of claims for the affected products; reviewing online descriptions for all products; implementing a weekly review by the Office Depot legal department of any items where production has moved outside of the U.S.; and increasing legal review of the company’s U.S.-origin claims. The FTC declined to provide a copy of the Office Depot letter.