Today the House of Representatives unanimously approved H.R. 4040, the Consumer Product Safety Commission Modernization Act of 2007, that virtually eliminates lead from children’s toys (down to 100 parts per million by 2012) and increases the funding of the CPSC. A Senate committee approved its own version of an anti-lead/pro-CPSC bill in October, but it hasn’t reached a floor vote yet—so sometime (early?) next year a final bill should be hammered out to send to the White House. Unless, of course, the lead toy furor disappears after Christmas.
cpsc
By 12.19.07
../../../..//2007/12/19/recalls-victorias-secret-stuffer-bear/
RECALLS: Victoria’s Secret Stuffer Bear (choking), Discount School Supply Giant Measuring Chart (lead), AAFES “Soldier Bear” Toys (lead), Honda Walk-Behind Lawn Mowers (laceration), Bombardier Ski-Doo® Model Year 2008 MXZ X 600 RS Snowmobiles (crashing),
By 12.18.07
../../../..//2007/12/18/recalls-gorilla-full-body-safety/
Recalls: Gorilla Full Body Safety Harnesses (falling), Specialized Bicycle Helmets (not safe enough), Queso Fresco Cheese (listeria), Barrilito candy syrup (lead), Snapps Ferry Packing Ground Beef (E.Coli).
22 Children Died Toy-Related Deaths In 2006
By 12.16.07
Toy injuries were responsible for 22 deaths and 220,500 emergency room visits in 2006, according to a report from the Consumer Product Safety Commission. The report looked at injuries affecting children under 15 and found that most deaths were caused by asphyxiation or collisions associated with riding toys, scooters, toy pegs, and rubber balls.
By 12.11.07
../../../..//2007/12/11/recalls-oceanic-and-aeris-scuba/
Recalls: Oceanic and AERIS SCUBA Regulators (drowning), Trader Joe’s Pinjur (small pieces of glass), Eclipse® 1175e Elliptical Trainers (falling), WEE CHI Ceramic Hairstyling Irons (fire, burn), Gamenamics Air-Powered Hockey Tables (burn), AtHome America Four-wick Decorative Candles (fire), QVC Cook’s Essential Electric Toasters (fire).
By 12.6.07
../../../..//2007/12/06/recalls-starbucks-fusion-coffee-mugs/
Recalls: Starbucks Fusion Coffee Mugs (burn), Home Depot Holiday Figurines (lead), Scope Apparel Boys’ Hooded Sweatshirts with Drawstrings (strangulation), RC2 First Years 3-in-1 Flush and Sounds Potty Seats (lead), RC2 First Years Newborn-to-Toddler Reclining Feeding Seats (falling), Sears Personal Identity-brand V-neck sweaters with hood (strangulation), Basic Editions-brand girls’ clothing sets (entrapment, strangulation), TKS-brand children’s pants (entrapment), Collins International Oscillating Ceramic Heaters sold at Menards (fire), Polaris Ranger RZR 800 EFI Utility Vehicles (fire, burn), Bowflex® Ultimate 2 Home Gyms (injury).
By 12.5.07
../../../..//2007/12/05/recalls-metromint-flavors-peppermint-spearmint/
RECALLS: Metromint flavors Peppermint, Spearmint, Orangemint, and Lemonmint (Bacillus cereus contamination), Ameriwood Entertainment Centers (collapsing killed child), Bell Collectible Mini Helmets (lead), Black & Decker® brand Infrawave™ Toasters (fire), Nordic Track and Reebok Inversion Benches (falling).
CPSC Has No Full Time Amusement Ride Inspector
By 12.5.07
If you’ve always just assumed there must be someone in charge of making sure those traveling carnivals have safe rides, you’re right. It’s our friends at the CPSC. Trouble is, they don’t actually have even one person whose full time job it is to ensure the safety of such rides, says the Washington Post.
The agency’s 90 field investigators — who oversee 15,000 products, work from their homes and live mostly on the East Coast — are so overstretched that they frequently arrive at carnival accident scenes after rides have been dismantled.
By 12.3.07
../../../..//2007/12/03/an-amusing-animation-depicting-the/
An amusing animation depicting the CPSC’s epic failures through song and dance, brought to you by Consumers Union, makers of Consumer Reports. Unfortunately, neither the Chinese Poison Train nor Snively Whiplash made an appearance. [NotInMyCart]
Consumer Testing Spurs Toy Recalls
By 12.2.07
The Times brings us the story of vigilant consumers who successfully drove regulatory agencies to yank dangerous toys from store shelves. We have argued, along with the CPSC, that consumer testing is an utter waste of time, but consumers who are willing to bring their suspicious toys to a professional lab are able to have a surprising impact.
By 11.30.07
../../../..//2007/11/30/recalls-designware-confetti-bursts-lead/
RECALLS: DesignWare Confetti Bursts (lead) (How do you even get lead on confetti? Easy. Lead-based paint) Sweetwater Valley Farms Sharp and Mild Cheddar (Listeria).
CPSC Issues Holiday Safety Brochure
By 11.30.07
Nancy Nord and the CPSC have published what might the densest collection of common sense “advice” we’ve ever seen: the “2008 Holiday Decoration Safety Tips” brochure, which you can download here if you need to. Among their tips: buy fire-resistant or non-flammable items whenever possible, don’t leave candles unattended, and don’t overwhelm the CPSC with “too much” power.
Asbestos Found In Several Products
By 11.28.07
Lead-tainted toys are old news! This Christmas, the new new thing is asbestos-tainted toys and other products.
By 11.28.07
../../../..//2007/11/28/recalls-dicks-sporting-goods-lazy/
Recalls: Dick’s Sporting Goods Lazy Loungers and Recliners (collapsing), Chintzy Reeves International horse ornaments (lead).
By 11.27.07
../../../..//2007/11/27/recalls-686500-nissan-altima-and/
RECALLS: 686,500 Nissan Altima and Sentra cars (engine stalling), Bon-Ton hooded sweatshirts (strangulation), Dick’s Sporting Goods “Power Bolt” Pitchbacks (laceration), Meijer Firepits (can tip over and start fire), Performax and Wilton 10″ Sliding Miter Saws (laceration), 95,927 pounds of American Foods Group beef (E. coli), 98,000 pounds of Double B Foods frozen sausage products (Listeria).
By 11.16.07
../../../..//2007/11/16/recalls-jetmax-childrens-wooden-storage/
Recalls: Jetmax Children’s Wooden Storage Rack (death by falling over and landing on child’s neck), 1998-2007 Honda Civics (rupturing, exploding, ejecting natural gas tank), 2007-2008 Forest River Flagstaff and Rockwood camping trailers (cable shaft breaking), GEM NEV 2007 Electrical Cars (parking brake failing), Thule utility trailers (axle falling off), 2008 Polaris Victory / Vision motorcycles (stalling),
By 11.15.07
../../../..//2007/11/15/recalls-roost-birch-bark-wrapped/
Recalls: Roost Birch Bark Wrapped Candles (fire, probably not a good idea to put a candle inside a flammable container), Bon-Ton Children’s Bath Robes (burn), Coffee Masters Chipper With Coffee Biscotti (undeclared protein derived from milk, eggs, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, and/or soybeans allergens), 2001 Chevy Silverados and GMC Sierras (defective crankshaft), 2007 Chevy Equinox and Pontiac Torrent (increased risk of head injury), 2001 Saturn L Series (timing chain separating), Tiffin RVs (refrigeration coolant leaks), 2004-2007 SUZUKI / GS500 and 2002-2007 SUZUKI / GZ250 (reflectors not reflecting enough).
By 11.13.07
../../../..//2007/11/13/dollar-store-childrens-sunglasses-lead/
Dollar Store children’s sunglasses (lead), Nike Football Helmet Chin Straps (they can break), Iceberg Enterprises folding chairs (falling), Del Rey tortillas (nausea), Tortilla land Beef Tamales (pieces of metal), Napastyle Romano Pitchers and Tumblers (lead), Kroger Light Caesar Salad Dressing (undeclared milk, eggs, and anchovies).
