As a kid, there’s probably nothing that feels like flying more than swinging as high as you can possibly go, before swooping back toward the ground and up again. But because that thrill can become dangerous if a child isn’t properly secured, Lil Tikes is recalling 540,000 toddler swings due to a fall hazard. [More]
Quality & Safety
Apple Investigating After iPhone 7 Plus Reportedly Explodes, Catches Fire
By 2.24.17
Four months after Apple launched an investigation into the alleged fire of an iPhone 7 device in Australia, the tech giant is opening a similar inquiry stateside after video posted this week shows an Arizona teen’s iPhone 7 Plus smoldering in its case. [More]
Over 126,300 Chicken Salad Bowls Recalled For Possible Listeria
By 2.23.17
A refrigerated pre-packaged salad makes a nice and healthy lunch, even if it has a few cheese curls on top as a garnish. It’s definitely not a healthy lunch if it can possibly make you sick with Listeriosis, and that’s the case for 30 tons of salad bowls that used cheese that’s part of the Deutsch Kase Haus recall. [More]
Calphalon Recalls 2M Kitchen Knives Because Blades Shouldn’t Break Off And Cut You
By 2.23.17
There are safe ways and unsafe ways to use a knife in the kitchen. But no matter how you’re holding it, the blade shouldn’t ever pop out of the handle and cut your hand on its way. And yet, kitchen stalwart Calphalon is now recalling two million pieces of cutlery because of exactly that problem. [More]
Evanger’s VP: Dog Food Recalled For Euthanasia Drugs Contained Horse DNA
By 2.22.17
An executive at pet food company Evanger’s, which recently recalled its own and Against the Grain beef canned dog food due to drug contamination, recently admitted to a Washington state newspaper that the recalled food contained horse DNA. The company has thus far blamed these issues on its meat supplier, but this is not the first time Evanger’s pet food has included an animal meat that wasn’t advertised. [More]
West Elm Will Offer Refunds To Owners Of Defective “Peggy” Furniture
By 2.22.17
Last week, West Elm’s “Peggy” couch leapt out of the pages of mid-price furniture catalogs and into the realm of viral cyber-stardom when unhappy Peggy owners realized they were far from alone in having a couch that seemed to start falling apart the day they first sat on it. Now West Elm tells Consumerist that refunds will be sent out to folks who purchased a defective Peggy. [More]
Keurig To Pay $5.8M Over Failure To Report Defective Coffee Brewers
By 2.22.17
Under federal law, manufacturers, distributors, and retailers are required to immediately report information regarding possible safety defects to the Consumer Product Safety Commission within 24 hours of obtaining reasonable supporting evidence. Keurig allegedly didn’t follow that rule when it came to the Dec. 2014 recall of 7 million MINI Plus Brewing Systems, and now the company must pay $5.8 million. [More]
Automakers Ask New EPA Chief Pruitt To Rescind Mileage, Greenhouse Gas Standards
By 2.22.17
Now that Scott Pruitt — the former Oklahoma Attorney General who repeatedly sued the Environmental Protection Agency — has been sworn in as the Administrator of the agency whose policies he once attacked, auto industry lobbyists are calling on the EPA to put a stop to longterm fuel-economy and emissions standards locked in by the previous White House. [More]
SodaStream Recalls 51K Bottles That Could Explode Under Pressure
By 2.22.17
When making a carbonated beverage at home you might expect there to be a little bit of pressure during the process, but probably not enough to make a bottle explode. Yet that’s what tens of thousands of recently recalled SodaStream bottles could do. [More]
Dodge, Chrysler Recall Nearly 70K Vehicles Over Possible Loss Of Power
By 2.21.17
Driving down the road and losing power doesn’t sound like a good combination. Yet, it can happen to nearly 70,000 Fiat Chrysler vehicles now being recalled. [More]
Restaurant Where 260 Diners Got Ill On Thanksgiving Has Closed Its Doors
By 2.21.17
Last Thanksgiving, hundreds of people who ate at one western New York restaurant fell ill thanks to what local health officials later determined was gravy containing the bacteria Clostridium perfringens. Some of those sickened diners have now filed lawsuits, and now the eatery is shutting its doors for good. [More]
Sargento, MDS Foods Expand Listeria-Contaminated Cheese Recalls
By 2.21.17 — Updated: 2.23.17
The possible listeria contamination affecting a number of cheese brands continues to grow, as Sargento and MDS Foods announced over the weekend the recall of more than a dozen additional products that may have come into contact with the listeria-tainted cheeses from supplier Deutsch Kase Haus. [More]
Wells Fargo’s New Account Openings Down 30% After Fake Account Fiasco
By 2.17.17
Despite overhauling its teller pay system and ditching a high-pressure sales goal incentive program, Wells Fargo continues to face the consequences of its fake account fiasco perpetrated by employees who opened more than two million unauthorized accounts, as customers continue to avoid opening new accounts and credit cards with the banking biggie. [More]
Report: Samsung Adding Sony To Lineup Of Battery Suppliers For Galaxy S8
By 2.17.17
Remember that problem Samsung had with lithium-ion batteries exploding in its Galaxy Note7 devices? Sure you do: They were all (eventually) recalled due to their propensity to burst into flame. In an effort to prevent such a debacle from happening again, Samsung is reportedly throwing a third battery supplier into the mix. [More]
Legislation Would Give FDA Mandatory Authority To Recall Drugs
By 2.17.17
Last month, the Food and Drug Administration confirmed that it had found varying and elevated levels of a potentially deadly toxin in teething tablets sold under the Hyland’s brand. Despite the dangers posed by the tablets, the FDA couldn’t order a recall of the products — and the manufacturer refused to. But that could change in the future, as recently introduced legislation would give the agency the authority to order mandatory recalls of drugs and homeopathic products. [More]
5 Home Repairs To Make Now To Avoid Problems Later
By 2.17.17
If you put off fixing a wobbly fence post or squeaky door hinge, it’s probably not going to end in a homeowners insurance claim. Other home repairs, if left unchecked, can quickly domino into major disasters. Water is a factor—if not the primary cause—in the majority of high-risk situations. Here’s how to identify priority home repairs and handle them at their source: [More]
Grocery Industry To Let “Sell-By” Labels Expire
By 2.16.17 — Updated: 2.17.17
Late last year, we observed that while reforming food labels would be a great idea to cut down on food waste, the grocery industry needs no law or prompting from the government to actually make that happen. However, it could create its own standards without the government helping at all. [More]
1 Million Pounds Of Vienna Sausages Recalled For Leaving MSG Off The Label
By 2.16.17
Aren’t Vienna sausages tasty little chicken-based snacks? Apparently, part of what makes some brands of them so tasty is monosodium glutamate, yet in one recent batch, the company left that ingredient off the label. Now it has to recall 500 tons of sausages, which were sold at retailers including Walmart. [More]
