Trouble in toyland
VPIRG releases annual report about unsafe toys
Toolbox
By Peter Hirschfeld Vermont Press Bureau - Published: November 26, 2008
MONTPELIER — The Pony Land Scented Pony Pet seems innocent enough.
The little filly's golden mane comes with an adorable red barrette (shaped like a butterfly) and a little comb lets little boys and girls style her pretty hair.
Pony Pet though, manufactured in China by a toymaker called JA-RU Inc., contains heavy doses of a toxic chemical that can cause reproductive defects, low sperm counts and a host of other unpleasant side effects.
"People definitely have the impression that the government would not allow a product, particularly a toy, to be sold if it weren't safe," says Paul Burns, executive director of the Vermont Public Interest Research Group. "And the sad fact is that's just not true."
Toys like the Pony Pet and Silly Fish Squirters, available on toy store shelves around Vermont, have landed on the U.S. Public Interest Group's 23rd annual Trouble in Toyland report. Both products contain high levels of phthalates, tests have shown.
VPIRG also has set its sights on toys containing lead, notably cheap costume jewelry whose lead content by weight, in some cases, is nearly 50 percent.
"A lot of costume jewelry is just loaded with lead," says Claire Howard, field director at VPIRG. "With a lot of these products we don't even have clarity on what countries they're coming in from, so there's just a lot of uncertainty around where they're coming from, who's producing them and what's in them."
Last year's toy report also targeted products containing lead and phthalates. The report, and accompanying media attention, fed a groundswell that resulted in the passage of two major bills last session banning products containing unsafe levels of the toxins.
The federal government soon followed, and Congress' Consumer Products Information Act of 2008 will ratchet down the allowable levels of either contaminant over the next few years.
Since federal law doesn't take effect until February, however, shoppers this holiday season may still encounter unsafe products in local stores and malls.
"This holiday season we're still in a situation of buyer beware, and all these products are still on the shelves," Howard said. "We want to impress upon the consumer that phthalates are still out there and lead is still out there in children's toys."
Howard said any soft plastic toy has the potential to contain high levels of phthalates.
VPIRG also has concerns about toys that contain components small enough to pose choking hazards to younger children.
A set of handcuff keys laid on a display table at the organization's Main Street offices in Montpelier could block a child's airway. If a toy fits though a cardboard toilet-paper roll, Howard said, it probably shouldn't be in the hands of a 3-year-old.
"Choking hazards are the number one risk we see," Howard said.
According to the organization's analysis, 190 children nationwide have died since 1990 choking on balloons, balls, marbles and toys.
Once the federal legislation does take effect, according to Burns, VPIRG will assume its familiar role as an industry watchdog to make sure suppliers and retailers are complying with the new standards.
The organization will also work to ensure adequate funding for enforcement, and effective protocols for testing the lead and phthalates levels in children's toys.
Contact Peter Hirschfeld at peter.hirschfeld@rutlandherald.com.
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