The boss of the company behind global fashion chain Uniqlo has told the BBC that the Japanese firm does not use cotton from the Xinjiang region of China in its products. It is the first time Fast Retailing's chief executive Tadashi Yanai has directly addressed the contentious issue.

revealed this week to BBC that Uniqlo was "not using" cotton from Xinjiang. "By mentioning which cotton we’re using ... actually, it gets too political if I say anymore so let's stop here," he said without adding further details. Companies that buy ...

Uniqlo is facing online backlash in China after the Fast Retailing's chief executive Tadashi Yanai said the clothing retailer does not source cotton from Xinjiang. Conversations around cotton sourced from Xinjiang have been a trigger point with Chinese consumers for the past few years given China has been accused of using forced labour by people from the minority Muslim Uyghur minority in its production.

Uniqlo is facing an online backlash in China after the boss of its parent company said the Japanese clothing retailer does not source cotton from Xinjiang. Fast Retailing's chief executive Tadashi Yanai said Uniqlo was "not using" cotton from the western Chinese province in a BBC interview this week.

Tadashi Yanai, chairman and president of Uniqlo clothing chain operator Fast Retailing Co., has caused controversy in China for ･･･