Uniqlo is facing an online backlash in China after the head of its parent company said the Japanese clothing retailer does not source cotton from Xinjiang.

Tadashi Yanai, chief executive of Fast Retailing, said Uniqlo “does not” use cotton from the western Chinese province a BBC interview that aired this week.

Commentators in China seized on the comment and called for a boycott of the retailer.

Cotton from Xinjiang is controversial because China is accused of using forced labor from members of the Muslim Uighur minority in its production. Beijing has consistently rejected these allegations.

Following the BBC report, commentators on the social media platform Weibo called for a boycott of Uniqlo.

Millions of people read posts with hashtags on the topic: “Uniqlo founder’s comments controversy.”

Related trending hashtags included: “Xinjiang cotton is the best in the world,” “I support Xinjiang cotton,” and “Uniqlo’s results in China take a slump.”

One user wrote: “Given this attitude from Uniqlo and the arrogance of their founder, they probably assume that mainland consumers will forget about it in a few days and continue buying. So can we stand firm this time?” “

The online reaction came after Mr Yanai told the BBC: “We don’t use cotton from Xinjiang.”

“By mentioning what cotton we use…” he continued, before pausing and ending his answer by saying, “Actually, if I say anything more, it’s getting too political, so we’ll stop there.”

In June 2022, Companies began to provide evidence that imports to the USA are not produced using forced labor.

Swedish company H&M has had its clothing pulled from major e-commerce stores in China after it refused to source cotton from Xinjiang.

Many global brands such as Nike, Burberry, Esprit and Adidas were boycotted after being embroiled in the controversy.

One of the reasons Uniqlo avoided the controversy was because Mr. Yanai refused to take a stand at the time.

Western companies continue to deal with the controversial issue.

In September, China’s Ministry of Commerce opened an investigation into Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger’s parent company, PVH, saying it was suspected of an “unjustified boycott” of Xinjiang cotton and other products “without any factual basis.”

According to media reports, PVH has stated that it will respond in accordance with relevant regulations.