chinese poison train

Toy Recalls Causing Headaches For Thrift Stores

Toy Recalls Causing Headaches For Thrift Stores

By 8.17.07

It’s hard to tell what you need to take off the shelf when you buy your product by the pound and aren’t really sure what you’re getting. That’s the problem thrift stores are facing now that so many toys have been recalled.

Store manager Jeremy Lamb said recalls are nothing new to him and his employees. They regularly receive them from their Seattle-based corporate office and they’ll handle the Mattel recall like any other: The recalled toys will be pulled from the shelves and tossed in the trash compactor, he said.

Nokia Recalls 46 Million Defective Batteries

Nokia Recalls 46 Million Defective Batteries

By 8.15.07

Nokia has recalled 46 million defective Chinese-made batteries according to the New York Times. The batteries can overheat and dislodge during charging. Nokia promises to replace the batteries at no cost to the consumer.

Leadly Poisonous Toys R' Us Bibs; No Fed Recall Yet

Leadly Poisonous Toys R' Us Bibs; No Fed Recall Yet

By consumerist.com 8.15.07

Toys R’ Us bibs test high for lead, three times the normal allowable level. Beware “Winni’ the Pooh” “Koala Baby” and “Especially for Baby” brand bibs. Unlike previous recalls, it’s not the paint that’s full of lead. The vinyl on the bibs themselves contain lead compounds.

CNBC's Erin Burnett Tells You Why China Is "Our Greatest Friend"

By 8.14.07

CNBC’s Erin Burnett thinks you should be grateful to China for keeping your prices low—at any cost: “..or China is to start making, say, toys that don’t have lead in them or food that isn’t poisonous, their costs of production are going to go up and that means prices at Walmart here in the…

Mattel Recalls Over 7 Million Chinese-Made Toys For Lead Paint, Magnets

Mattel Recalls Over 7 Million Chinese-Made Toys For Lead Paint, Magnets

By 8.14.07

Today Mattel expanded their lead paint recall to include 253,000 die cast “Cars” toys. In addition, Mattel expended a 2006 magnetic toy recall to include about 7 million other toys.

Mattel Will Recall Another Chinese-Made Toy For Lead Paint

Mattel Will Recall Another Chinese-Made Toy For Lead Paint

By consumerist.com 8.14.07

Mattel is probably going to take another toy off the shelves due to overleaded paint, reports the AP and a tipster. The announcement of which toy could come today.

Chinese Car Fails Frontal Crash Test In Spectacular Fashion

By 8.13.07

Last month Chrysler struck a deal with the manufacturer of the Chery Amulet, shown in the above crash test video. In accordance with the deal, Chery would manufacture small cars for import into the US.

Chinese Lead Toy Maker Commits Suicide In Mattel Recall Aftermath

Chinese Lead Toy Maker Commits Suicide In Mattel Recall Aftermath

By consumerist.com 8.13.07

The owner of a Chinese toy factory identified by Mattel as the maker of the lead-tainted toys involved in a million unit recall committed suicide Saturday afternoon inside his factory, according to Chinese officials, the AP reports. According to the article, dishonored officials commonly commit suicide.

China: It's Mattel's Fault That Chinese Companies Manufactured Toys Covered With Lead. What?

China: It's Mattel's Fault That Chinese Companies Manufactured Toys Covered With Lead. What?

By consumeristcarey 8.11.07

China’s General Administration for Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (GAQSIQ) blamed Mattel for the recent lead contamination of nearly 1 million toys, saying that the toy maker did not adequately supervise their suppliers. Mattel’s oversight safeguards are widely regarded as the “gold standard” for manufacturing in China. From the LA Times:

Is China Going To Execute Lead-Toy Vendors?

Is China Going To Execute Lead-Toy Vendors?

By cwalters 8.9.07

Chinese officials have announced that they will “severely” punish the vendors responsible for the recent lead-tainted toy snafu. That leads us to ask, what do they consider severe punishment? Remember what they did to the director of the food and drug agency for accepting poisoned toothpaste bribes? And the new state-sponsored video game “Incorruptible Fighter”, where players get to execute corrupt officials with magic or weapons, is so popular that it’s been downloaded over 100,000 times.

Chinese Tire Recall Goes Into Effect

By 8.9.07

NHTSA ordered the recall after Foreign Tire Sales told the agency that some of Hangzhou Zhongce’s tires were made without a safety feature, called a gum strip, that helps bind the belts of a tire to each other. Some of the tires had a gum strip about half the width of the 0.6 millimeter gum strip Foreign Tire Sales expected, the importer said.

Mattel Identifies Manufacturer Responsible For Supplying 967,000 Tainted Toys

Mattel Identifies Manufacturer Responsible For Supplying 967,000 Tainted Toys

By consumeristcarey 8.8.07

Mattel is blaming a potentially bankrupt cardboard box vendor for supplying 967,000 toys covered with lead paint. The toy maker publicly identified the Lee Der Industrial Company in Guangdong province in the hopes that other toy makers will take their business elsewhere. The AP tried to call Lee Der for comment, which resulted in this odd exchange:

FDA Ban Fails To Catch 1 Million Pounds Of Chinese Seafood

By consumeristcarey 8.8.07

1 million pounds of shrimp, eel, and catfish somehow slipped past the FDA’s ban on Chinese seafood. All seafood covered by the ban arrives at U.S. ports under an import alert, which ostensibly prevents the fish from leaving until private testing proves the absence of banned antibiotics and drugs. Chinese importers, resorting to tricks possibly gleaned from Wile E. Coyote, evade the FDA by shipping their contraband under the names and addresses of companies unaffected by the import alert. From the AP:

Lead-Tainted Charms From China Very Unlucky

Lead-Tainted Charms From China Very Unlucky

By cwalters 8.7.07

The poisonous lead story continues this week with news that 20% of trinkets and charms sold in the United States still contain dangerous levels of lead. In a surprise to no one, “of the 17.9 million pieces of jewelry items pulled from the market since the start of 2005, 95 percent were made in China.” Here’s a good scare quote to drive home the danger:

Jewelry is perhaps the most dangerous place for lead because children can swallow an entire ring or pendant, causing acute poisoning, which can cause respiratory failure, seizures and even death, whereas neurological damage and learning deficiencies are often associated with exposure to lead paint. Many children also tend to suck on jewelry or put it in their mouths, allowing lead to be absorbed into their bloodstream.

Fisher-Price Being Investigated By CPSC Due To Shoddy Track Record Reporting Defects

Fisher-Price Being Investigated By CPSC Due To Shoddy Track Record Reporting Defects

By 8.7.07

Fisher-Price has a shoddy track record when it comes to reporting defects and “injuries from defects” to the Consumer Products Safety Commission.

Recall Aftershock: Consumer Safety Commission Brought Back From Near Death For Six Months

Recall Aftershock: Consumer Safety Commission Brought Back From Near Death For Six Months

By cwalters 8.6.07

Congress just put your wiretapping dollars to work, by amending a homeland security bill to allow the Consumer Product Safety Commission to regain “its full authority to oversee the safety of thousands of household products,” says the Washington Post. The reprieve only lasts for six months, but during that time it allows the commission–which has been hobbling along in an inactive state since January because of an ongoing member vacancy–to meet and take action on matters of consumer safety with only two members present.

Children, Lead Paint and Toys Are A Bad Combination

Children, Lead Paint and Toys Are A Bad Combination

By 8.3.07

So what are the risks for a child who had one of the toys that was recalled?

Mattel Thought They Could Outsmart The Chinese Poison Train

By consumeristcarey 8.2.07

Two weeks before announcing the recall of nearly 1 million toys tainted with toxic lead paint, Mattel was featured in the New York Times as a role model, the “gold standard” for companies manufacturing goods in China. The Chinese Poison Train’s ability to sneak past Mattel’s fortified defenses highlights the tremendous difficulties faced by well-meaning American manufacturers trying to police their supply chains. Mattel spared no expense to ensure the safety of their products.

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