Microfiber towel not made in China

[steve]

Now this one surprised me. I was sure that China had cornered the market on the polyester and polyamide (both derived from petroleum waste) that was used to make microfiber.

But this Dry Me Crazy Jr. Car Drying Towel looks like it's made in Germany.

Okay, it says "sewn and assembled in Germany", which means the raw materials probably come from China. But at the very least there's someone, anyone, not in China who's transforming the raw materials into a product. That's a start, at least.



Here are some other options, likely the same story (raw materials from China, assembled in the USA).

Flitz Premium Microfiber Polishing Cloth

Ultra Clarity Ultra Premium Microfiber Cloths 6-Pack

Avoid a brand called USANOOKS on Amazon that has the word "USA" in its name and pictures of the US flag, but it's made in China.

[Paul]

Nice find! And even the raw materials are not from China according to their Facebook post.
https://www.facebook.com/microfibermadn ... 853400352/
The fabric is manufactured in Korea, shipped on rolls to our manufacturing in Germany , and then cut, sewn, and finished there into the final Dry Me Crazy towel.

[steve]

Wow, thanks for that additional detail, Paul! So rare to find anything with microfiber that doesn't go through China.

I just went down the rabbit hole of researching the production of PTA (purified terephthalic acid, the polyester precursor). China's been able to dominate because the margins are so low that most industrialized countries didn't think it worth the effort or environmental damage (not a problem for the CCP). China ramped up production to the point where there's oversupply—that's why you see everything made of plastic these days.

Glad to see South Korea does have domestic petroleum refining and PTA production and that Germany has found their way to them. It's a similar story with rare earth minerals...China was willing to take on the dirty work that no one else wanted to do, and now we're all dependent on them.

[steve]

Here are a few others I found.

- THOR Mister Twister V2 Microfiber Towels - Made in South Korea (presumably of Korean raw materials)
- The Tag Company Edgeless Towels - Made in South Korea of Korean microfiber
- Autofiber Korean Twist Towels - Made in South Korea of Korean microfiber
- The Wash Boss Car Wash Pad - Made in South Korea of Korean microfiber
- Microfiber Cleaning Cloth 6-Pack - Made in South Korea of Korean microfiber
- The House of Rags Microfiber Towels - Made in South Korea of Korean microfiber

Looks like there's an embarrassment of riches here, although of course the high-volume, cheap quality China made ones are the ones that dominate Amazon searches. Hopefully some people in the market for microfiber will find their way here...plenty of options for NMIC. And of course, while all these companies market these for use with cars, they're just as good for things like household cleaning, window cleaning (no lint, no scratches, no streaks), general utility, and specialized uses.

[Jessi Joy]

Here are a few others I found.

- THOR Mister Twister V2 Microfiber Towels - Made in South Korea (presumably of Korean raw materials)
- The Tag Company Edgeless Towels - Made in South Korea of Korean microfiber
- Autofiber Korean Twist Towels - Made in South Korea of Korean microfiber
- The Wash Boss Car Wash Pad - Made in South Korea of Korean microfiber
- Microfiber Cleaning Cloth 6-Pack - Made in South Korea of Korean microfiber
- The House of Rags Microfiber Towels - Made in South Korea of Korean microfiber

Looks like there's an embarrassment of riches here, although of course the high-volume, cheap quality China made ones are the ones that dominate Amazon searches. Hopefully some people in the market for microfiber will find their way here...plenty of options for NMIC. And of course, while all these companies market these for use with cars, they're just as good for things like household cleaning, window cleaning (no lint, no scratches, no streaks), general utility, and specialized uses.