Target hit with $600,000 penalty for violating 30-year-old ban on lead toys
Filed under: Recalls, Consumer Ally
Retail giant Target was hit with a $600,000 penalty by by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission for importing and selling hundreds of thousands of toys with excessive levels of lead paint --violating a 30-year ban.
Minneapolis-based Target Corp. agreed to the penalty to settle allegations the company imported a variety of toys with high levels of lead. The CPSC's staff accused Target of "knowingly" importing and selling the toys and failing "to take adequate action to ensure that no toys or children's products would bear lead-containing paint." Target denied those allegations.
Target officials did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment. UPDATE (12:30 p.m., 10/1): See Target's statement below.
The Chinese-made toys were imported and sold for $3-$10 between May 2006 and August 2007 at Target stores nationwide. The lead-tainted toys include Kool Toyz Products, Anima - Bamboo Collection Games, Happy Giddy Gardening Tools and Sunny Patch Chairs. The toys were recalled in 2007. At the time, the CPSC said Target had sold 350,000 of them. See more images of the products here.
(See what happened this week with Target Halloween flashlights.)
"These highly publicized toy recalls were among many that helped spur action last year to impose even stricter limits on lead paint on toys," CPSC Chairman Inez Tenenbaum said in a statement. "This penalty should remind importers and retailers that they have always had the same obligation to meet the strict lead limits as the manufacturers."
Statement from Target:
"Target requires our national brand and owned-brand vendors to meet and comply with all laws regarding product safety. Based upon information provided by our vendors, Target believed that items in the product lines identified in the CPSC/Target civil penalty settlement did meet our standards and were compliant with all product safety laws when delivered to Target.
Subsequent testing revealed that some of the items contained paint with lead in excess of the federal standard. The CPSC and Target issued a voluntary recall of these lines in 2007 when this was discovered. These items are not currently sold at Target and we received no reports of injuries relating to these compliance violations.
Providing high-quality and safe products to our guests is a top priority for Target. Target currently employs a rigorous multi-stage testing program to monitor all owned-brand children's products and confirm that the products meet all applicable regulatory requirements, as well as Target's quality standards. Multi-stage testing catches potential quality and safety issues before and during production. Testing by a third-party lab occurs during the initial production run and at random intervals during ongoing production."
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Recalled Children's Products
If you own any children's products or are going to buy some second-hand, this is a list that could help save a life. All have been recalled because they have put kids in peril -- with design flaws or defects that risk burns, broken bones and even death. Click through this gallery to view images of each product.
www.cpsc.gov
www.cpsc.gov
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 16)
10-01-2009 @ 10:42AM
Heidi said...
Not enought fine, NASCAR drivers get bigger fines for saying sh*t on TV
Reply
10-01-2009 @ 11:35AM
10smom24 said...
what a joke! Like 600K really matters to Target.
10-01-2009 @ 12:06PM
bacon6116@comcast.net said...
Wow, you are completely right. That is just pocket change for a large corporation--they didn't even blink. And for potentially causing permanent damage to children?!!! I hope someone lost their jobs over that one. It's nothing more than corporate greed.....and, of course, to satisfy the American public's demand for a bargain. We all boo-hoo over corporations like Wal-mart coming in and putting small companies and mom and pop stores out of business, but the majority of Americans will drive across town to save a paltry forty cents on a can of paint or a toy. We created the monster long ago with our own greed and quest for convenience. I know when Wal-mart moved into my area, people flooded in the doors like their lives depended on it. I try to boycott, but the sad reality is that if you live in a very rural area like I do, there are few other choices for certain products--especially with the gas prices these days. I would love to, but I simply can't afford to drive 40 miles if my kids need new socks or underwear, for example. We don't have a Target in my area, but I guess it looks like they are now going down the same path as Wal-mart. I'm glad my children are older--it would be frightening to know that you can't trust Target any more than you can the local Dollar store for safe toys.
10-01-2009 @ 12:41PM
Logan said...
Scandal with Michelle Obama! http://tr.im/typU
10-01-2009 @ 2:18PM
Dan said...
Its obvisous that Target dont care about our kids knowing that these toys are harmfull and they still stocked the shelves with these toys. Sure $600,000 is nothing to Target but if people stopped shopping at Target maybe that would get the message accross.
10-01-2009 @ 6:08PM
Kevin said...
I agree. Since Target is a French company, I think they should be kicked out of the US for endangering children!
10-02-2009 @ 12:50AM
Siobhan said...
Kevin, you're a fool. They're not French, they're not Chinese. They're Americans, who could care less if some kid gets lead poisoning because their parents wanted to save a buck. They're corporate America. Stop trying to blame other countries because you just can't stand the idea that your land of the free is slowly killing itself with greed. Back on topic: Yes, this is a stupid "fine" that is mere pocket change to Target. This is profit for a single district in a day, hardly even worth it. They might as well have walked up to the CEO, given him a small slap on the wrist, and said "now, stop that". I worked for the company for two years, and their underhanded bull**** made me sick. They offer promotions, raises, etc. to keep their employees quiet. Then they don't even follow through. In my two years there, I was offered not one, not two, but three different promotions, which were not given to me, and I was hired for a higher paying position than they actually put me in. I had to call their "Integrity Hotline" multiple times before anything was actually done. When our reviews came in, they claimed that corporate actually told them to give everyone a bad review to keep our raises low. In two years there, I got a whopping ten cents in raises. They are corrupted by money and greed, and it truly makes me sad. Thankfully, I am out of there and MUCH happier working in holistic animal nutrition.
10-01-2009 @ 10:32AM
Joy said...
:: sighs :: target... what's wrong with you? You're not wal-mart, you don't need a bad rap like they have...
Reply
10-01-2009 @ 10:44AM
TabbieinColo said...
I totally agree with that.. Target is a great store. I would not shop @ Wal-Mart. If they gave me a Thousand Dollar Gift card. Boo to Wal-Mart
10-01-2009 @ 11:20AM
Rutherford Underwood said...
Strange, The Lead Paint Item Never States How Our Biggest Producer of Our Childrens Toys Is China Which Violates Every Safety Rules, for the Sake of Obcene Profit...
Children Safety/Or Huge Profite, Guess Which Always Wins?
:: Rutherford Underwood
10-01-2009 @ 2:20PM
Bastet said...
Surprised it wasn't Walmart. Love your name..Joy. Same as mine!
10-01-2009 @ 5:50PM
David said...
Wrong, they are exactly like walmart. Low wages, predominantly chinese products and worse for the fact that they charge considerably more for the items. Can someone point out something that specifically make Target a better company?
10-01-2009 @ 8:35PM
koolwoman said...
I too prefer Target over Walmart. I haven't set foot in a Walmart in years and won't until they pay their employees a living wage, provide affordable health insurance, and start selling american made products again. Since this is the first time I've heard anything negative on Target, I am giving them a pass, (this time) . I trust that the employees responsible for buying these lead toys, have been retired, and that includes the boss who told the buyers not to bother testing for lead, because of the added cost. Back when I was a buyer for a large corporation, we had our own lab for testing products. I hope this fine will get their attention, and that they will be closely monitored.
10-04-2009 @ 10:24AM
Minette Sweeney said...
Just more corporate welfare at the expense of the majority of American citizens. Our govt., regardless of party, doesn't care about the people. Makes me crazy that more people aren't outraged by that....but they aren't cuz it's still happening and only "we the people" can put a stop to it.
10-04-2009 @ 12:27PM
Me said...
to the woman who doesnt shop at walmart because they have low wages.....target doesnt pay anymore than walmart. trust me i know....i work there! they pay minimum wage....i started at 7.25 an hour! and you would think theyd pay more. i figured they would, thats why i applied there and not arcoss the street at walmart. WRONG!
10-01-2009 @ 10:33AM
tom said...
Boo China!
Reply
10-01-2009 @ 10:42AM
Shane said...
It will not stop until we consumers stop buying China made crap. They have little or not QC for thier products & they just don't care.
I read labels & if its made in China I don't but it. I try where ever I can to purchase American made products......can't always be done but I am willing to pay the extra cash.
10-01-2009 @ 11:30AM
Capt Patriot said...
Sadly American children can suffer from developmental disorders due to the lack of manufacturing controls in CHINA!
Is this a failure of capitalism? Of "Free Trade"? Of Communism?
Most of these products are manufactured in Asia...
Get with it America... The real issues are to much complex for the average US union worker...
How do we compete on a global scale? By the time we in the US figure it out it may be to late.
The Capt Patriot
10-01-2009 @ 11:29AM
GOD DAMN OLD MAN said...
China stuff.........
Was on a vacation in the badlands and picked up a small stone!
Just like I thought, "MADE IN CHINA!"
This has got to stop............
10-01-2009 @ 12:20PM
JOYCE said...
A MEN !!