WASHINGTON, Sept. 12, 2007
Mattel Pledges Quick Warnings On Toys
In Wake Of Massive Recall, Company Is Reworking Its Process For Alerting Regulators To Problems
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Play CBS Video Video China Vows To Police Toys
Following massive recalls of toys made in China that posed lead hazards, the Chinese government has promised to enforce safety. But Nancy Cordes reports that toy companies aren't taking any chances.
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Mattel Chief Executive Office Robert Eckert, right, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2007, before the Senate Appropriations subcommittee hearing on toy safety standards. From right are, Eckert, Toys "R" Us Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Gerald Storch, and Toy Industry Association President Carter Keithley. (AP)
The Consumer Product Safety Commission embraced Democrats' calls for more money after years of cutbacks to the beleaguered agency. "This situation cannot continue," said Nancy Nord, the CPSC's acting chief.
Testimony to Congress on Wednesday by both federal regulators and toy manufacturers detailed loose Chinese standards and spotty U.S. enforcement that have contributed to a spate of recalls of Chinese-made toys, food and other products as health threats.
Seeking to tamp down public outrage, Eckert told a Senate Appropriations subcommittee that the company would now test the safety of Chinese-made products with its own laboratories or with laboratories certified by the company.
He disputed reports that public warnings about the dangerous products were delayed because of disagreements with federal regulators or that Mattel might be motivated by saving money at the expense of safety when it chose to do business in China.
"I, like you, am deeply disturbed and disappointed by recent events. We were let down, and so we let you down," Eckert said. "But we have tackled difficult issues before and demonstrated an ability to make change for the better."
In recent weeks, Mattel has recalled millions of Chinese-made toys, including popular Barbie, Polly Pocket and "Cars" movie items, because of concerns about lead paint and tiny magnets that could be swallowed.
Under federal rules, manufacturers with a few exceptions must report all claims of potentially hazardous product defects within 24 hours. Mattel reportedly took months to gather information and privately investigate problems after becoming aware of them.
On Wednesday, Eckert said Mattel has been working with the CPSC to "develop a new set of reporting protocols" but denied any suggestions of a feud.
The hearing comes as manufacturers and retailers scramble to restore public confidence in the safety of toys made in the United States, particularly those made in China, as the Christmas holiday season approaches.
In recent days, the Toy Industry Association has expressed support for congressional efforts to impose mandatory safety-testing standards. Companies such as Walt Disney Co. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. have announced their own measures, with toy maker Step2 Co. saying Wednesday it intends to expand its labeling next week to make sure consumers know a product's foreign origins.
The CPSC, too, has come under fire. Its staff has steadily dropped from almost 800 employees in 1974 to an all-time low of about 400 employees now.
Displaying a photo of a CPSC laboratory strewn with boxes and piles of uninspected toys, Democratic Sen. Richard Durbin called U.S. enforcement practices unacceptable and said he would work to boost funding to roughly $70 million.
"After discovering that a toy I purchased for my grandson was recalled in May, I asked myself the same question parents across the country are asking today - who is in charge?" Durbin said. "The answer is that there is one employee at the Consumer Product Safety Commission responsible for testing toys and ensuring toy safety throughout the country."
Nord and CPSC commissioner Thomas Moore said the extra money would be helpful as the agency faces record imports from China.
"It has taken years for the commission to get to its present position and it will take years to correct," Moore said.
Sen. Sam Brownback, the top Republican on the panel, agreed that the CPSC needed to provide better oversight. But he leveled his harshest criticism at China's safety standards.
"'Made in China' has now become a warning label," Brownback said. "We're seeing this in the charts and we're seeing it in the products and it's got to stop."
Separately, China's product safety chief Li Changjiang offered assurances that toys made in China would be "safer, better and more appealing." Li's remarks at a food safety conference in Beijing seemed intended to reassure consumers in the United States and elsewhere.
China has become a center for the world's toy-making industry, exporting $7.5 billion worth of toys last year and accounting for nearly 87 percent of the toys imported by the United States, according to China's Commerce Ministry.
"Before Christmas, we will certainly provide children safer, better and more appealing toys. They will certainly like them," Li told reporters.
On Tuesday, China signed an agreement to prohibit the use of lead paint on toys exported to the United States.
"We know consumers are asking how they can be sure the toys they buy for their families are safe," Jerry Storch, chairman of Toys "R" Us Inc., told the Senate panel. He said the company would announce new measures this week to directly notify consumers of recalls with an e-mail notification system as well as bilingual notices.
"We support legislation shortening the time frames during the period between identification of a problem and the eventual recall of that product," he said. "We are troubled by the possibility that we could be continuing to sell toys that someone knows may have a problem, while we remain unaware until we receive word that a recall is coming."
Mattel is not the only company that has had to recall products made in China for a variety of reasons.
In June, toy maker RC2 Corp. voluntarily recalled 1.5 million wooden railroad toys and set parts from its Thomas & Friends Wooden Railway product line because of lead paint. And in July, Hasbro Inc. recalled Chinese-made Easy Bake ovens on reports of second- and third-degree burns to children.
© MMVII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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See all 41 CommentsYeah, China still has this nerve to say they won''t export those items "TO U.S.", not to the world, and Mattell still has a nerve to say they watch China-made products, not "we''ll quit manufacturing in China". Doesn''t matter if it''s harmful or not, I''ll boycott any product made in this country all together, I don''t support unethical countries or companies.
Although it will be difficult, this Santa will be looking for more "Made In America" label$.
Chineeze food is out the window also.
One of my favorites, although I lean more towards "one size fits all", and "jazz from hell"...
This is another cost of "globalization", soon, we will all be poisoned slaves, working for the same wages as the Chinese.
I have a hard time understanding this - does this mean they just keep producing and exporting toxic items to non US countries? How ethical that would be....
peace is knowing your words don''t become ghosts but leave an embrace instead of a choke
peace is having the strength to say something''s wrong but that it can change for that i have hope
where traitors are dealt with and we''ve had our say and peace can be given a chance here to stay
Step 1: Don''''t buy Chinese. Don''''t buy Mattel. Buy American.
Posted by gkc99 at 08:21 PM : Sep 12, 2007
Finally! Someone is using their brain!
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I am sick of hearing about the ungrateful poops like yourself. repug or domorat, I could care less, you ungrateful what ever you call yourself.
But the elephant in the living room that nobody wants to mention is the root cause for all of this. It isn''t Mattel''s fault. Their mandate is profit, not public welfare. In today''s world it is folly to expect Corporate America to do the right thing. It''s partly the government''s fault. Public welfare is the mandate of the government, despite outcries of "nanny state." However, public welfare is compromised by political expedience when it comes to dealing with big business. But ultimately it''s our own fault. Today we demand bottom-dollar consumer goods, and we don''t ask too many hard questions. Perfect. Free. Now. Even if it isn''t Perfect, if it''s Free and Now we''re good to go. But the other side of the coin is you get what you pay for. Mattel is satisfying our demand for cheap consumer goods, and the only thing they want to make is money (not toys). Meanwhile, the government is all too happy to pursue policies that help Mattel satisfy our demand...
Re: "In Wake Of Massive Recall, Company Is Reworking Its Process For Alerting Regulators To Problems"
Allow me to help them out. How about printing up some signs for retailers that say, "Our toys may cause brain damage and/or death to your children"?
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See all 41 Comments