Warning: This paper might have been “Made in China.” Whatever you do, don’t stick your fingers in your mouth, as tempting as it may seem. You have now been exposed to lead-based ink.
As we speak, the lead is absorbing into your skin and into your blood cells. In a matter of days, weeks, months or maybe years, you will experience reproductive problems, nerve disorders and mental retardation among other nasty ailments.
After three recalls in six weeks involving Chinese-made toys with high levels of lead paint, it’s time for the U.S. to take matters into its own hands. More than a million toys have already been recalled including, but not limited to, Polly Pocket dolls, Batman action figures, and Barbie accessories.
Hey Cal State Long Beach student, you know that cute T.M.X. Elmo doll you bought your little sister for her birthday? She could be sticking poison in her mouth. And that Thomas the Tank Engine your little brother has? Yep, that is probably toxic, too.
According to statistics from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, out of the past 39 recalls involving lead, 38 of the products were made in China – a statistic which clearly speaks volumes. American toy-importers are more interested in quantity rather than the quality.
Big corporations, like Mattel Inc. think they are saving money by outsourcing production. Hence the “Made in China” labels we see on virtually everything American consumers seem willing to snatch up. But they’re not. They’re actually losing millions because of the mass recalls.
China supposedly has a national standard on the lead levels in toys, yet they do not adhere to those standards. On the books, their standards are actually higher than those in the U.S. But that doesn’t mean squat when there is no enforcement by Chinese or American regulators, who are practically absent. U.S. inspectors aren’t even allowed in the factories.
In the profit-driven world where “supply greets demand,” if these recalls continue the way they recently have, prices will soar before Christmas to pass the losses from toy purchasers’ laziness to unsuspecting American consumers.
The U.S. industrial giants want to make money, but it’s too expensive to manufacture in the states. Instead, they utilize China’s cheap labor force to cut production costs and thereby make a few more bucks.
However, China is catching onto this concept and factory owners are just as greedy as their American counterparts. With an abundance of available cheap labor, it’s no wonder they are trying to squeeze an extra buck or two by using low cost, toxic materials.
In a poorly regulated market, factory owners can cut corners and lower production costs by using paint with higher levels of lead. After all, lead-base paint costs three times less than safer acryllic- or latex-based paint. Talk about savings.
With so many recalls – and more projected – it causes one to wonder whether or not some toy industry giants knew about the situation beforehand. Don’t you feel the love when Mattel’s CEO Robert Eckert comes out saying things like, “No system is perfect,” and “We aren’t perfect?” How cliché is “We’re doing everything we can”?
Are they really? If so, why so many recalls? It’s merely the public relations strategy of “damage control.” Mattel is just trying to cover its butt and regain the trust they’ve already lost.
In an effort to resolve the problem, Mattel claims, “[We have] dropped problem vendors, boosted product testing and imposed tighter restrictions on contractors.” Along with some of the nation’s biggest industries, Mattel is even supporting changes in federal regulation, according to an article in the N.Y. Times.
On the record, they are making efforts to make changes. But off the record, that’s the concept of damage control, isn’t it? Face it, not everybody will run back to KB Toys to return the poisonous junk. Many will merely donate them to a local thrift store, where some low-income mom won’t be able to resist buying a shiny new toy for a buck.
Perhaps the potential for lawsuits has already been built into the equation and added to the bottom line. Perhaps businesses are merely turning a blind eye on sleazy regulation. As long as production costs are low, they make a profit. If they are reaching the demands of the American public, who cares?
China definitely doesn’t. Their children aren’t the ones playing with the deadly toys.
By the way, this article wasn’t “Made in China.”
Niki Payne is a senior journalism major and a contributing writing for the Daily Forty-Niner.
