Worried that the whole tainted export thing might further poison their image, China this week revoked the export licenses of 750 toy factories citing quality control problems. The move came just as the Senate Commerce Committee passed the CPSC Reform Act, which would strengthen domestic toy safety standards and impose penalties of up to $100 million on companies that sell dangerous toys.
Despite the announcement of the license suspensions, Chinese regulators said 99 percent of toy exports in southern Guangdong Province, near Hong Kong, met quality standards.But those figures seemed contradictory; regulators in Guangdong said that they had visited over 1,700 facilities and that 764, more than a third, had their licenses revoked. Nearly as many were ordered to bring their factories up to quality standards.
The license revocations won’t affect the holiday season. Our manufactured toys are already gently floating over the Pacific and will arrive just in time to sneak under Christmas trees and Hanukkah bushes.
China still hasn’t addressed the rampant corruption at the local level that allows business to skirt regulations, nor have they reformed the nation’s regulatory system. This is just a random cracking of the whip to remind us that China still hasn’t forgotten about toy safety.
China Bars Exports by 750 Toy Makers [NYT]
(AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
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Maybe they meant that 99% of the remaining companies meet standards?
Am I the only parent that has made scrapbooks of these “tainted toy” articles to leave under the tree in lieu of toys for the kids this year?
No, just me? Alrighty, then…
When is anyone in this country “um… WALMART HELLO” going to learn that anything coming out of China is GARBAGE. Not only there products, but their goverments information as well.
I know that no one in the system seems to care, cause good forbid we have to pay a little bit more to know our products are safe, and just maybe made in the US of A.
Not to sound dooms day or anything, but we as a country have gotten to a point that if another country wanted to start a real war on terror, all they would have to do is stop shipping us their crap. You think American company’s are ready to fire back up the shops that make these goods? Oh…. Wait, they tore most of them down… AHHHHHH SNAPPPPPP.
Folks, I’m pleased to announce that a new truckload
of Laramie’s, with their smoooooth good taste of fresh tobacco
flavor is already heading towards Springfield. The driver has been
instructed to ignore all stop signs and crosswalks.
Well, as long as the average Wal-Mart customer buys mostly rollback items, Diet Coke, and cigarettes (smoked in the car with toddlers), then no, I don’t think a rat’s ass factors into this consumer decision. I think we’re lucky that government forces are doing anything at all.
Gee, only 100,000 are now left to poison our kids!
As long as they are regulating companies in a legitimate, comprehensive, and proactive way, and not the “look, we cracked down on it by killing some people!” (and who knows if they were the ones actually at fault or not) creepy way.
@homerjay: I thought that was Duff?
No toys for christmas this year. Guess all the kids will get socks.
Does renovate mean “scrape off all the old lead paint” before firing up the assembly line again?
@Sudonum: No no… you’re thinking of “How long will it take you to flood this town with alcahol again.”
“four minutes”
i wonder if they make pencils……seems like a wise business to start, ya know with all the lead they seem to have. or what about weights? there are things that are actually supposed to be made with lead. they should capitalize on that.
Re: Lead->Pencil jokes:
The core of all of them is a pun. Puns do not work with additional layers of joke obscuring them.
It isn’t funny. Please stop.
This is why I give my niece and nephews books for Christmas. They hate me now, but they’ll thank me when they’re still alive next year.
Our kids are getting books and software. Less risky probably more intellectually stimulating. It probably helps that our kids are geeks.
Chinese officials have revoked the export licenses of more than a third of its toy factories. With all these toy recalls and lead scares, it’ll be amazing if the holidays don’t get postponed this year.
I think I’ll learn to macramé, and make gifts for the children I know this year. I think they’ll love it.
You know what no one seems to mention is failing to happen??? OUR (the U.S.) government getting involved and taking a stance on this.
Why?
Because we owe our 2+ trillion dollar deficit TO CHINA! They keep lending us more and more money for our war, and we have to keep our damn mouths shut.
Basicaly, our government has been purchased by China.
It seems everybody is still scared of this lead crap. Are you saying you can’t find any toys that are not from China? Please, quit worrying, buy your kids what they want, and supervise them.
They will survive without any harm just like we did as kids. Quit buying into the scare tactic being perpetrated by people that want publicity.
@BigNutty: Actually, yes, it’s harder than you’d think to find toys that aren’t made in China these days.
And if it’s illegal, it’s illegal, end of story.
What about Lego?
“China Revokes 750 Export Licenses, Orders 690 Toy Factories To Renovate”….
How about some perspective on this?
How many actual export licenses and toy factories are there in China?
Are these quoted, probably unsubstantiated figures, just a drop in the bucket for show purposes?
@TechnoDestructo: Pencil leads are made of graphite, ie. carbon.