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Don’t blame China for recalls
By Derek Larson
H.A. and Margret Rey likely never anticipated writing a book called “Curious George Gets Recalled,” but that’s what happened Nov. 8. About 175,000 stuffed Curious George figures were pulled from the market when excessive levels of lead were found in one version of the popular toy.
The inquisitive monkey was just the latest in an unprecedented spate of toy recalls — more than 25 million units this year — that are disrupting holiday sales and creating headaches for parents and retailers alike. The vast majority of the items recalled for lead or other chemical contamination were made in China, provoking a backlash against Chinese toys in general.
But the real source of the problem is not an evil Chinese plot to poison our kids. It’s the American companies’ desire for ever greater profit, the consumers’ demand for ever cheaper products, and the corresponding unwillingness by either to pay for quality or the services needed to ensure product safety regulations are enforced.
Low cost
China is capable of manufacturing just about anything and at virtually every level of quality. State-of-the-art, high-tech factories in China can engineer and produce goods that are certainly equal to their Western counterparts when asked to do so.
But a big part of the attraction to Chinese products for retailers is their very low cost, which unfortunately does not come without a price.
That price may simply be lower quality, a reasonable trade-off with certain items. Who doesn’t need a disposable paintbrush or spare screwdriver now and then? But as we’ve seen in recent months, sometimes that cost is less apparent and can take dangerous forms, such as toys contaminated with lead, or as we saw last spring, pet food additives tainted with toxic chemicals.
Tough laws
The toy industry is quick to point out that the United States has some of the world’s strongest regulations when it comes to toy safety, which is true. What the industry does not mention is that those regulations are poorly enforced.
Indeed, recent congressional hearings have disclosed that just one employee of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is responsible for all toy safety monitoring and the agency has seen its staff cut by almost 60 percent since it was founded more than 30 years ago.
Without U.S. inspectors in the Chinese plants, the odds are good that we will continue to see recalls.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar, along with Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, has called for new regulations and increased inspections, which should be part of the solution. But the problem will likely not be solved until American consumers recognize that safety comes at a cost, as does quality. We can’t have both cheap products and cheap government if we want to avoid future recalls and threats to our children’s safety.
There are some signs that the marketplace is developing a solution in advance of the politicians. Since this summer, dozens of Web sites have sprung up offering American-made toys guaranteed to be free of lead or other toxins. Some of these have clearly anti-Chinese marketing plans, including “The Not Made In China Store” and Maple Landmark Woodcraft, a Vermont-based manufacturer of wood toys.
Business is good. Maple Landmark says it has been overwhelmed by orders despite doubling its staff and will not be able to deliver orders before Christmas. Meanwhile, toymaker Hasbro will launch a national ad campaign reminding consumers that none of their toys have been recalled for lead or other toxic contaminants, unlike those of competitor Mattel.
This may all be sorted out by Christmas 2008, mostly likely with a combination of new regulations and a significant federal investment in enforcement in China and product testing here in the United States.
Meanwhile, here’s a simple metric you can use when selecting toys for kids this holiday season. Make a list of the following three adjectives: cheap, safe and Chinese. When it comes to toys you should be able to find items with any two of those qualities.
If it seems like you’re getting all three in one package, ask yourself if it’s true.
Perhaps those blocks from Vermont might be a better buy after all.
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