Georgia Factory Exporting Chopsticks by the Millions

Apparently this has been a thing for awhile, but it’s back in the news with the story of Jae Lee, a U.S. citizen originally from South Korea who owns Georgia Chopsticks, a factory that creates four million sets of chopsticks each week and exports them all to China. Part of the success is the abundant resources present in Georgia that China and Japan are currently lacking. And importantly for the U.S. economy, the article notes “Lee’s success stands in stark contrast to the general perception that U.S. factories have fallen silent, while American stores are glutted with products made in China.” Surprising quote of the article: The mayor of the town where Lee set up tries to explain the high demand for chopsticks: “You and I use a fork and put it in the dishwasher, but I guess if you use chopsticks one time, you dispose of them.” Yea…not quite the whole picture there.