Buy Made in American

1. When you buy American made products, you create jobs. Employment is the foundation for our economy, and when consumers buy products made in America, the economy grows. The cost of buying foreign made goods based on a lower price costs your family far more long-term than it does to invest in the American worker.

2. When you buy American made products, you contribute to Growth: When you buy American made products, it pays for American wages that promote growth for businesses. When companies are profitable, they invest, pay taxes and expand. This helps enhance the very way of life your family enjoys. Money you spend on foreign made products leave this country for good.

3. Other factors: Emerging countries where inexpensive imports come from have relaxed regulations towards protecting the environment and human rights. Manufacturers in some countries pollute the soil, air, and water. When you buy American, you are certain that strict regulations protect the environment so our children can appreciate the same beautiful country as you have.

How important is it to you to buy products made in America?
We asked that very question in an informal Facebook poll to see how the results stacked up against our nationally representative survey on the same topic. As with our National poll, on Facebook, responders overwhelmingly said they 'd rather buy products made in the U.S.A. In all, 949 people voted.

In our original survey conducted by the Consumer Reports National Research Center, we asked Americans 18 and older about shopping for U.S.-made products. The results (see below) appeared in the March issue of Consumer Reports:

- 74 percent had tried to buy a U.S.-made product in the past year.

- 60 percent said they'd always or sometimes rather buy U.S.-made goods than those from another country. People 55 and over were much more likely than those 18 to 34 to feel that way.

- 41 percent of respondents who tried to buy a U.S.-made product in the past year said that they couldn't identify which ones were made in the U.S.

- 39 percent said no products in the relevant category were made in the U.S.