Defective & Dangerous Products

• Toy recalls prompt lead poisoning fears

  Staff Writer | August 23, 2007 12:28 PM | 0 CommentsMontgomery, AL

  The latest statistics from the Centers from Disease Control (CDC) is that more than 300,000 children in the U.S. are affected by damaging levels of lead in their systems. The most affected are children under 6 years of age. A sad story in The Tampa Tribune tells of Noah, a 4-year-old boy who was recently diagnosed with lead poisoning after an original diagnosis of autism due to his symptoms.The...

• Wal-Mart Confirms, Dog Treats Contain "Small Amounts of Melamine"

  Courtney Mills | August 22, 2007 2:56 PM | 0 CommentsHuntsville, AL

  A Wal-Mart spokeswoman confirmed today that the two Chinese brands of dog treats pulled from shelves last month contain trace amounts of melamine, a chemical found in fertilizer.Wal-Mart had quietly removed from shelves on July 26, 2007, Chicken Jerky of Shanghai Bestro Trading, and Chicken Jerky Strips of Import-Pingyang Pet Product Co., after customers had complained that their pets were...

• Thomas and Friends, Curious George Recall More Lead Painted Toys

  Courtney Mills | August 22, 2007 10:56 AM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission in conjunction with Schylling Associates of Rowley, MA, announced a voluntary recall of the company's Spinning Tops and Tin Pails.The recall affects about 70, 000 units imported from China, and is specifically concerned about surface paint on the wooden handles of the tops and pails that may contain excessive quantities of lead. Lead is a neurotoxin...

• Dangerous clothing from China under microscope

  Staff Writer | August 22, 2007 7:29 AM | 0 CommentsMontgomery, AL

  The latest report, this time from New Zealand, on defective products made in China is that infant's and children's clothing may contain dangerous levels of the chemical formaldehyde, which is known to cause skin and eye irritations, respiratory difficulties, asthma and even cancer. This news and that of the recent, widespread toy recalls affecting huge companies like Mattel and Fisher Price, has...

• Medical monitoring legal debate and toy recalls

  Staff Writer | August 21, 2007 1:27 PM | 0 CommentsMontgomery, AL

  An article in yesterday's Wall Street Journal Online discusses the merritts of medical monitoring, a legal theory that is gaining momentum and support, especially in light of the recent and widespread toy recalls. The question is whether families who believe their children have been exposed to dangerous levels of lead in the toys being recalled have the right to sue toy manufacturers even before...

• Poison pajamas from China now a concern

  Staff Writer | August 21, 2007 7:15 AM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  Like the recalled toys that have caused a recent scare, many of the clothes infants and children wear are also made in China. A new report out of New Zealand says that "scientists found formaldehyde in woollen and cotton clothes at 500 times higher than is safe." Most of those toxic clothes were made in China.Formaldehyde, which is often used in clothing to give it a permanent press appearance,...

• Toy recalls put parents on edge

  Staff Writer | August 20, 2007 1:07 PM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  From Thomas the Tank Engine to Sesame Street, it seems that many of those classic toys that have been a part of generations of children's lives are now seen in a different light as the toy recalls continue.Many parents are scouring the Web for lists of recalled products and then scouring their children's toy chests to weed out the bad apples. Some parents are even testing toys for lead paint,...

• Fisher Price Recalls 1M Toys for Lead Hazard

  Chrissie Cole | August 15, 2007 9:29 PM | 0 CommentsGadsden, AL

  Fisher -Price, a division of Mattel Inc., in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced a toy recall of approximately 967,000 toys due to the surface paints containing excessive levels of lead. Lead can be toxic if ingested by small children.The recalled toys were manufactured by a Chinese vendor and sold within the U.S. using non-approved paint pigments that...

• Mattel Recalls Spotlight Inattention to Defective Products

  Courtney Mills | August 15, 2007 1:57 PM | 0 CommentsHuntsville, AL

  Mattel's late notice of a recall to consumers of some 9 million toys in the U.S. indicates how lax oversight on goods entering into this country has become. The recall of these toys is just the latest in a series of problems experienced with Chinese-made goods in the United States: some because of lead paint contamination on toy trains, others because of DEG contamination in toothpaste, and...

• Mattel Issues 2nd Major Toy Recall - 9 Million Toys

  Courtney Mills | August 14, 2007 10:40 AM | 0 CommentsMontgomery, AL

  America's largest toymaker Mattel has issued a second large toy recall in nearly two weeks, this time for nearly 9 million Chinese-made toys due to lead paint contamination or because of possible choke hazard. The toy manufacturer has singled out quintessential Mattel characters such as Barbie and Batman for recall. The CPSC announced that the Batman, Barbie & Tanner, and 'Polly Pocket'...