Consumerist

Quality & Safety

Every Toy Recalled In The U.S. Shares The Same Label: Made In China

By consumeristcarey 6.19.07

The New York Times is reporting that China is responsible for each and every one of the 24 toy recalls issued this year. Chinese manufactures supply up to 80% of the toys sold on the U.S. market. A new record was even set last year after the CPSC yanked 467 Chinese products off U.S. shelves.

China’s own government auditing agency reported last month that 20 percent of the toys made and sold in China had safety hazards such as small parts that could be swallowed or sharp edges that could cut a child, according to a report in China Daily. Officials in China, of course, are fighting back, insisting that its food and other exports are safe and valuable, that new regulations are being put into place and that problem goods account for a tiny portion of all exports.

We wonder if the office of some Chinese official has a framed fortune reading: You shall tell many lies today. Lucky Numbers: 24 80 467 20. — CAREY GREENBERG-BERGER

choking hazards

CPSC Recalls DS-MAX-Made Toy Trucks For Choking Hazard

By consumerist.com 6.18.07

Neither CPSC nor DS-MAX U.S.A. Inc. is aware of any injuries with the toy trucks.

recalls

Fake Toxic Colgate Still On Store Shelves

By Meg Marco 6.18.07

The Herald News of New Jersey conducted an informal survey of local dollar stores and found that 4 out of 9 were still selling fake Colgate toothpaste flavored with a toxic chemical more commonly found in antifreeze. The FDA reminds you:

The counterfeit toothpaste can be easily recognized because it is labeled as “Manufactured in South Africa.” Colgate does not import toothpaste into the United States from South Africa. In addition, the counterfeit packages examined so far have several misspellings including: “isclinically” “SOUTH AFRLCA” “South African Dental Assoxiation”.

Colgate did not manufacture the fake toothpaste and claims that the health risk of the counterfeit paste is minimal.

complaints

This Walmart Birthday Cake Shows Excellent Craftmanship

By Meg Marco 6.18.07

Hey consumerist just thought I’d let you and every other customer out there know that Wal-mart sucks at making cakes! It was my daughter’s 3rd birthday yesterday (06.17.07) and my wife ordered a cake a week ago to be made for this date. When we picked it up with a little less than an hour until the party started, we were extremely disappointed to say the least. We complained and they gave us 20% off but that wasn’t enough as far as we were concerned. I told customer service “We shouldn’t have to pay more than half for a half-assed cake” (I just couldn’t resist making a pun haha). All they said was “twenty percent is the most we can give you”. We didn’t have time to get another cake and just went ahead and bought it but we will never buy another cake from Wal-Mart again that’s for damn sure. I mean look at at it, it looks hardly anything like the advertisement! That strip with black lines on it, yeah that’s supposed to look like a film strip. Oh and to boot my wife ordered butter cream filling and they put strawberry instead. Is it really that hard to follow directions and deliver a worthy product? Apparently.

Indeed, that cake is pretty weak. They should probably get rid of the picture if they can’t actually make that cake.

safety

Chinese Poison Train Defeats FDA, The Prequel

By consumeristcarey 6.17.07

Ten years ago, the FDA tried and failed to identify the driver of the deadly Chinese Poison Train. The investigation started when diethylene glycol produced by a state-owned company was mixed into fever medicine, killing 88 Haitian children.

The F.D.A.’s efforts to investigate the Haiti poisonings, documented in internal F.D.A. memorandums obtained by The New York Times, demonstrate not only the intransigence of Chinese officials, but also the same regulatory failings that allowed a virtually identical poisoning to occur 10 years later. The cases further illustrate what happens when nations fail to police the global pipeline of pharmaceutical ingredients.

The Chinese Poison Train hides behind a veil of secrecy and lies, after the jump…

chinese poison train

Recall Round-Up: The Toy Is Full Of Kerosene And Other Adventures

By Meg Marco 6.15.07

The jewel decorations on the shoes can detach, posing a choking hazard to young children. Units: About 1,800 Manufactured in: China

trains

1.5 Million Thomas & Friends Toys Recalled Due To Lead Paint From China

By Meg Marco 6.13.07

Way to go, China! You’ve turned our “Chinese Poison Train” into something literal. Good job!

recalls

Beef Recall Expanded To Eleven Western States

By consumeristcarey 6.11.07

5.7 million pounds of beef distributed by United Food Group may be infected with E. coli. The beef bears sell-by dates from April 6-April 20; though the beef won’t be found on supermarket shelves, it might still be in your freezer.

The recalled products were shipped to stores in Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. They were sold under the brand names Moran’s All Natural, Miller Meat Company, Stater Bros., Trader Joe’s Butcher Shop, Inter-American Products Inc. and Basha’s.

safety

Crash Test Your Car!

By consumerist.com 6.8.07

Ever wanted to see what your car would look like if a dummy drove it into a wall (a dummy other than the cousin who borrowed your car for a joyride)? Admit it, you think about it when you get a lousy trade-in price. Thankfully, there’s the Consumer Reports Crash Test videos, where you can see how your car will hold up against things like short concrete walls and other typical objects found along a highway.

meerkat

CPSC Broken, Can't Issue Involuntary Recall Of Dangerous ATV For Children

By Meg Marco 6.8.07

Meet the Kazuma Meerkat 50 Youth All-Terrain Vehicle. It has no front brakes, no parking brake and can be started in gear. It is meant for 6 to 11 year-olds. Why isn’t it being recalled?

recalls

Walmart Pet Food Recalled Due To Salmonella Contamination

By Meg Marco 6.7.07

Only one specific lot of 55 pound bonus bags of Ol’ Roy Complete Nutrition dry dog food was affected. Pets who eat the food or people who handle it could be infected with salmonella, so if you’ve purchased this dog food you’re going to want to throw it out and return the empty bag to Walmart for a refund.

recalls

Safeway Recalls Ground Beef Due to E. Coli Contamination

By Meg Marco 6.7.07

If you live in Arizona and bought ground beef at Safeway, you’ll want to return it for a refund or discard it.

safety

Roller Shoes Send 1600 Uncoordinated People To The Emergency Room

By Meg Marco 6.7.07

Here’s a shocking update, putting little wheels on the bottom of your shoes is dangerous. No! Yes! 1600 emergency room visits last year were blamed on roller shoes or “heelys.” For those of you not familiar with “heelys” they’re the wheeled shoe that sends children floating past you like the nun in Blues Brothers as you walk around Target shopping for paper towels and Diet Coke.

recalls

Maytag Sends You A New Dishwasher?

By Meg Marco 6.6.07

Steve thinks he may be getting a new dishwasher. Steve’s old dishwasher was part of Feburary’s potentially flammable dishwasher recall. He called for the repair kit, and never received anything. Someone from Maytag called to follow up and was shocked to hear the dishwasher was still out of commission. So they’re sending Steve a new one.

chinese poison train

Today's Helpful Tip From The FDA: Throw Out Poisonous Chinese Toothpaste

By consumeristcarey 6.2.07

Remember how the FDA said there was “no evidence” that Chinese toothpaste tainted with diethylene glycol had made it to the U.S.? That was wrong.

peanut butter

200 More Sickened by Recalled Salmonella Peanut Butter

By Meg Marco 6.1.07

Look, we don’t know how else to say this. Throw away the m*therf***ing recalled peanut butter! You’re making us crazy! Stop getting sick! STOP IT!

non-dairy

Jamba Juice "Milk In The Non-Dairy" Mystery Solved

By consumerist.com 6.1.07

Now we know the real reason for the “Jamba Juice actually has milk in the non-dairy mix!” balderdash back in early April: bad typesetting.

lawsuits

USDA To Meatpackers: You Have No Right To Test For Deadly Diseases

By consumeristcarey 5.31.07

The USDA has vowed to safeguard your meat by fighting reckless meatpackers that want to test their dead cattle for mad cow disease. The USDA’s current policy of testing less than 1% of cows is clearly succeeding since none of you have caught Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, the human variant of mad cow disease.

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