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 The announcement came after state-owned China Central Television (CCTV)
criticized the world's No. 1 retailer for circumventing its quality
control process and fast-tracking some products with higher profit
margins.
Wal-Mart will "ensure the correct documents and other required items
are in place before the products are sold in our stores," the
retailer said in a statement.
Documentation includes labels that accurately reflect ingredients,
government test reports, China Compulsory Certificates, sample
products or photographs, copies of manufacturing permits, details
substantiating health claims and claims such as "organic" and
"world-famous", official barcodes and papers on intellectual
property.
"This process requires the collection, organization, filing and
retention of well over one million documents annually," the company
said.
"Wal-Mart China has now invested in a computer-based system enabling
vendors to upload all required legal documents. This system was
piloted in September of 2013 and is now ready for broad-based
application across the supply chain."
Wal-Mart, which operates more than 400 stores and warehouses in
China, said immediately after the CCTV report last week that it
keeps a close watch over its supply chain.
It said it only uses its expedited special approvals process in
specific circumstances such as when a supplier changes the size of a
product or switches distribution agents.
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In the statement on Wednesday, the company explained additional
steps it would take to address supply chain concern.
Wal-Mart is the latest in a series of foreign companies CCTV has
taken to task on issues ranging from pricing to poor quality
products and shoddy customer service.
Targets of the reports, which have had mixed results, include coffee
chain Starbucks Corp <SBUX.O>, consumer electronics groups Apple Inc
<AAPL.O> and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd <005930.KS>, the KFC
restaurants of Yum Brands Inc <YUM.N>, drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline PLC
<GSK.L> and car brands Audi from Volkswagen AG <VOWG_p.DE>, Subaru
from Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd <7270.T>, and Jaguar Land Rover from
Tata Motors Ltd <TAMO.NS>.
(Reporting by Clare Baldwin; editing by
Christopher Cushing)
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