Yes, you are certainly entitled to ask any supplier if any aspects of their production are outsourced. I suspect the importance of the outcome is relative to the amount of money being spent with said supplier, and the degree of personalisation required to complete the production function.For example, it is now common for accountants to outsource bookkeeping related functions to offshore (read cheaper, but no less qualified) suppliers. The reasoning is that they are better able to concentrate on more important advisory functions for their clientele.