DHS Bans Imports From Three Chinese Genomic Companies Because of Their Ties to Forced Labor

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced a new ban on imports from three Chinese genomic companies because of the companies’ ties to forced labor in Xinjiang, where the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is committing a genocide of the Uyghurs. Known collectively as the BGI Group, BGI Genomics Co. Ltd, MGI Tech ​Co Ltd., and Shenzhen BGI Technology ⁠Co ⁠Ltd. are the newest additions to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List.

"BGI is China’s state-controlled DNA collection company and a national security threat to the American people. Thanks to Secretary Mullin and the Trump Administration for stepping up and stopping this company’s products from being imported into the United States,” said Chairman John Moolenaar of the Select Committee on China. “The CCP’s genocide of the Uyghurs is one of the Party’s many human rights abuses and BGI’s use of forced labor must never corrupt our markets. This announcement is also a reminder that American pharmaceutical companies should stop doing clinical trials in Xinjiang, because of the significant concerns about ethics and data integrity of the data.”

Background

In June, BGI was added to the Pentagon’s 1260H list with dozens of other Chinese companies. “Thanks to the bipartisan BIOSECURE Act that was signed into law in December, Americans’ medical data will be protected from BGI and Wuxi Apptec, two malicious Chinese biotech companies that enable the PLA’s biological experimentation,” said Moolenaar at the time.

The same month, Moolenaar sent letters to AbbVie, Bristol Meyers Squibb, Merck, Lilly, and Pfizer probing each company for more information about their drug development operations in Xinjiang.