12 Million "Shrek" glasses recalled by McDonald's
Cadmium was found in the paint of glasses sold at McDonald’s. 12 Million Drinking glasses that feature characters from the movie “Shrek Forever After” are being voluntarily recalled by McDonald’s in collaboration with the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).
The 16-ounce glasses were sold at McDonald’s restaurants for $2, beginning on May 21st, 2010. The four designs include Puss n’ Boots, Shrek, Princess Fiona and Donkey and were manufactured by ARC International, based in Millville, N.J.
No injuries have been reported and, “The glasses have far less cadmium than the children’s metal jewelry that CPSC has previously recalled,” said a spokesperson for the CPSC.
Customers cag get instructions to return the glassware and request a refund by visiting www.mcdonalds.com/glasses beginning June 8th or call 1-800-244-6227.
This marks the fifth recall for cadmium issued by the CPSC this year. Prior to this year, no recall has ever been issued for cadmium. Essco Safety Check is continuing to work with CPSC and FDA on issues involving heavy metals in consumer products.
Do you “know what is in your environment?”
Share
The Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced that the U.S. Subsidiaries of Daiso, a Japanese retailer, has agreed to pay a fine of $2.05 Million civil penalty and stop importing children’s products due to alleged violations of federal safety laws. Daiso must also demonstrate to the CPSC that it has sufficient knowledge of and is in compliance of CPSC safety standards and testing requirements.
Daiso California LLC and Daiso Seattle LLC have had a total of five recalls for 698 toys and other children’s products since 2008. These recalls were for lead, phthalates, strangulation and choking hazards. This is a relatively small number of products recalled compared to the several million recalled by Mattel in 2007, of which Mattel was only fined $2.3 Million.
“This landmark agreement for the injunction sets a precedent for any firm attempting to distribute hazardous products to our nation’s children,” Commission Chairwoman Inez Tenenbaum said. “We are committed to the safety of children’s products, and we will use the full force of our enforcement powers to prevent the sale of harmful products.”
A senior executive at Daiso said the company accepts the fine and wants to make sure the products it imports are safe.
I would recommend that Daiso utilize X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) Analyzers as part of a reasonable testing/safety program to help determine if their products have harmful regulated metals such as lead or cadmium in their consumer products. XRF Analyzers can help detect if elements are present of not present, they are non-destructive, accurate and a cost effective solution that can helping save businesses money while providing information that can ultimately lead to compliance with regulations.
You can visit Daiso’s web page about their recalls at www.daisorecall.com
Essco Safety Check played a small role in this recall; we initially assisted the Associated Press with data and information from over two years of testing consumer products using our XRF analyzers. Our data, along with data from HealthStuff.org lead the AP to do an investigation about cadmium in children’s jewelry. That investigation has lead to this recall.
Today, January 29, 2010, the US Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a voluntary recall of children’s metal necklaces. In corporation with F.A.F. of Greenville, R.I. about 55,000 units were recalled.
The products recalled are shaped as a frog pendant or metal crown on a metal chain necklace. The model #’s are 4616-4187 & 4616-4190 with UPC #’s 72783367144 & 72783367147
Children's jewelry recalled
These items were sold exclusively at Wal-Mart retail stores nationwide from November 2009 through January 2010 for approximately $5.
It is recommended that consumer immediately remove these recalled items from children. Please take all the recalled jewelry to any Wal-Mart retail store for a full refund or a free replacement product.
For those of you who wish to further contact F.A.F or additional information, please call F.A.F Inc at 1-800-949-3311 between 8 am and 4:30 pm ET Monday – Friday or visit www.faf.com
Testing by Essco Safety Check has resulted in several recalls in 2008 & 2009, including a national recall of a children’s jewelry that was recalled by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) due to risk of lead exposure.
By using XRF analyzers to detect the presence of a variety of toxic elements including; lead, cadmium, arsenic and mercury, Essco Safety Check provided information to the CPSC. This particular piece of children’s jewelry was found to contain high levels of lead during an inspection that was performed at a retailer in Seattle, WA, who was concerned about the products that they were selling.
On July 3rd, 2008 the CPSC issued a recall after further testing confirmed that lead was present in the item. There were approximately 13,000 items from Bead Bazaar USA Inc., of Rockville, Md. The name of the item recalled was “It’s a Girl Thing” Bracelets, Necklaces, and Phone Charms. It was recalled because this children’s jewelry item could contain high levels of lead. There were no incidents or injuries reported.
The UPC numbers for this item are 633870018419 (bracelet), 633870018426 (necklace), and 633870018433 (phone charm). It was sold at retailers nationwide from February 2006 through June 2008 for about $6. Consumers should return this product to the place of purchase for a refund.
Additionally in 2008 & 2009, Essco Safety Check has also provided information to importers and retailers that have resulted in several local/specific recalls. These businesses decided to recall their products based on testing results that indicated high lead levels.
Essco Safety Check is proud to be making a difference and keeping our community safer.
To see the list of recalled items by the CPSC, please visit their website http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prerel.html
