Strollerderby

Mattel Pays Up – Karma for Tainted Toys

Posted by SunnyChanel

The big boys will have to pay out the big bucks.  Toy behemoth Mattel, Inc was ordered to pay $12 million bucks to be dispersed between 39 states. This was a settlement over the lead-tainted toys that were shipped to the states from China.
Mattel and Fisher-Price (which they own) recalled a TON of toys last year, more than 21 million. There was worry that the toys were finished off with lead paint. Also recalled were toys that had itsy bitsy magnets due to the fear that kids could swallow them.

Moving forward Mattel agreed to “lower the acceptable level of lead in toys shipped to the states to 90 parts per million down from 600 parts per million, which is currently the federal standard.” Who knew was even an “acceptable level of lead” in kids toys?

It does sound like justice has been served and that not only did they have a financial consequence to their lack of oversight but that in the future there will be much more awareness to safety issues with our children’s toys.

Were any of your child’s toys part of the recall? Does this kind of toy scare make you just want to go totally green toywise?

Also check out:

Barbie Beats Bratz in Battle of the Dolls

 

Via AP


+ DIGG + STUMBLE
Posted Dec 15 2008, 06:15 PM
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Comments

 

Sharon McEachern said:

Hang on there, you say "the big boys will have to pay out the big bucks." Listen, this $12 million settlement is a good deal for Mattel -- a really cheap settlement to be divided among 39 states. One anaylst said that $12 million would not even have covered the legal costs for Mattel if the company had not settled. As the world's largest toymaker, Mattel has $6 billion in revenues -- the Barbie line alone accounts for 80 percent of the company's profits. Speaking of profits, in just the third-quarter of 2008 Mattel made $238 million in profit. So how come a mere $12 million settlement?

Don't forget, lead exposure can cause cancer and birth defects and sometimes results in death. Last year Mattel and its subsidiary Fisher Price recalled more than 21 million Chinese-made toys. That's a lot of toxic toys to be played with by millions of our children.

Ethic Soup blog has a good article on this settlement, at:

www.ethicsoup.com/.../toy-giant-mattel-settles-with-38-states-for-tainted-leadpainted-toys.html

Sharon McEachern

December 15, 2008 9:13 PM

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