Labour Lens

Lodge

Lacks transparency

Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.

Homewares, furniture & appliances

Partly verified: what this means

Last researched 2 November 2026 · 5 sources

Family-owned US maker of cast iron skillets and Dutch ovens.

There's no proof Lodge pays more than the legal minimum, which in China is below a living wage, and it has no full independent audit.

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Graded higher than Lodge, selling the same kinds of things.

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Why it's graded Lacks transparency

  • Not met: Meets 2 of 6 Good requirements.
  • Holds the grade back: It has 2 red flags: no evidence of a living wage and a hidden, unaudited supply chain in high-risk countries. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
  • It isn't Harm on record, because there's no serious confirmed problem on its record.
  • Lacks transparency is still a poor grade: in supply chains like this, workers who can't be seen to be treated fairly are usually underpaid or unprotected.

How grades are decided

Good requirements 2 of 6

  • Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
  • Not met: Respects worker rightsSome of its products are made in countries such as China and India, where unions are heavily restricted, and it has no full supply chain audit.
  • Not met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standards
  • Met: No child or forced labour findings or links
  • Not met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that list
  • Met: High-risk raw materials (such as timber and cotton) traced or certified, or not a major part of its rangeNone recorded in a major share of its range

Red flags 2

  • Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
  • Red flag: Hidden supply chain, partly in countries with poor worker rights

Stars it would earn as Good

None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars

Where it's made

Lodge names some of the countries it makes in: the United States, China and Vietnam. The rest is shown as where homewares and appliances are usually made.

Where it's made, and conditions there
CountryWorker rightsLegal minimum wageForced labour risk
ChinaNo guarantee of rightsBelow a living wageModerate
VietnamSystematic violationsWell below a living wageModerate
United StatesSystematic violationsBelow a living wageLow
IndiaUsual for the industryNo guarantee of rightsWell below a living wageHigh
PolandUsual for the industryRegular violationsClose to a living wageModerate
IndonesiaUsual for the industryNo guarantee of rightsWell below a living wageModerate
MalaysiaUsual for the industryNo guarantee of rightsBelow a living wageModerate

Evidence

What we found

  • No high-risk raw materials (such as timber and cotton) are recorded in a major share of its range, so the raw-material check doesn't hold it back for Good.
  • Makes part of its range in its own factories

Research notes Lodge makes its core cast iron range in its own foundries in South Pittsburg, Tennessee, where US labour and workplace safety law applies, and its USA Enamel line at a US plant opened in 2023. Its other enamelled cast iron is made by partners in China or Vietnam that it does not name, and it does not say how much is made in each country. It publishes no supplier list, supplier code of conduct or audit information for its imported lines.

Sources and actions

Sources 5

Show all 5 sources
  1. Lodge brings its Dutch ovens to America (Nashville Scene, 2023) · search the archive · Cast iron made in Lodge's South Pittsburg foundries; enamel Dutch ovens previously made in Asia; new US enamel plant; family-owned
  2. Lodge Manufacturing investing $56M in South Pittsburg expansion (Business Facilities, 2021) · search the archive · Lodge expanding its own South Pittsburg foundry, adding 239 jobs, after a 2017 foundry opening
  3. Lodge Blacklock Cast Iron Skillet 30cm (Kitchen Warehouse) · search the archive · Sold by Australian retailer Kitchen Warehouse; listed as made in USA
  4. Lodge Cast Iron Skillet 16.5cm (Myer) · search the archive · Lodge cookware sold by Myer, an Australian department store chain

Published by Lodge or its owner

  1. Enameled Cast Iron Oval Dutch Oven - 7 Quart (Lodge) · search the archive · Lodge enamelled Dutch oven made by its partners in China or Vietnam

Company details

Headquarters
United States
Last researched
2 November 2026
Cite this page
Labour Lens, "Is Lodge ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/lodge, last researched 2 November 2026, accessed [date].
Method
Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means

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