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Letter to the editor

Deck the halls with ... poison?

Holiday items' lead warnings are getting more notice.

By MARK ALBRIGHT, Times Staff Writer
Published November 13, 2007

Aunna Elm didn't notice the warning label until she was hanging up the Christmas wreath purchased at an Oldsmar Target.

The label advised her to wash her hands every time she handled the wreath because the product contains lead that causes birth defects and cancer.

"It didn't say 'may' or 'could.' It said 'does' and 'will,' " recalled the 39-year-old mother of two who immediately imagined her 3-year-son sticking his hand in his mouth after touching the cord. "Why are they still selling this if it contains lead?"

Back at Target to get a lead-free version, she learned most similar holiday decorations in Target's trim-a-tree department - as well as other retailers' - carry the same warning. Clerks offered no explanation. A call to a toll-free number referred her to a Web site describing California's Proposition 65, but more on that later.

Elm's reaction shows how a series of product recalls has shoppers on edge for the holidays, especially parents of young children. Toy clerks say shoppers read labels closer, refuse to buy toys made in China and bypass painted toys to avoid lead.

Marketing experts doubt the fallout is that severe. People don't always do what they say they will. And children will put the heat on for the hottest toys.

"If these recalls keep coming in last week it was AquaDots, they are going to weigh even heavier on shoppers' minds, yet stores have not trained their people to field questions or suggest options," said Kyle Langley, a research manager at Maritz Research, a St. Louis market research firm.

Toymakers and retailers have responded by yanking products off the shelves. They stepped up inspections and post recalls at the front door. They also created Web sites with safety tips.

"Events have catalyzed increased scrutiny in manufacturing, tighter controls and substantially more product testing," said Jerry Storch, chief executive of Toys "R" Us. Inc.

But Toys "R" Us drops any product required to sport a Proposition 65 warning.

As far as Elm's wreath, Target stands behind the products, which meet the Underwriter Laboratory standards.

"We believe there is no health hazard, but we label in conformance with California law because of the efficiencies of uniformity in printing packaging nationwide," said spokeswoman Ann Rogers. "We've used the label for years. But now people really are on the lookout."

California voters approved Proposition 65 in 1986. It requires a warning on any product with enough lead or toxic ingredients to cause cancer or birth defects. The law, however, is mostly enforced by private attorneys who test the products, then sue for the lack of a label. Critics complain the tactics spawned an industry of bounty-hunting lawyers. Public-interest groups laud the law as a form of advocacy that replaces lax government agencies without costing the taxpayers. Companies complain about being held to stricter standards than federal law.

Most big retailers have been on the hit list with Prop 65 allegations on everything from toys to hair drier cords.

"Lead is easy to prove (because repeated exposure to even trace, minimal amounts can contribute to a cumulative hazard in children) and retailers are easier to go after than overseas manufacturers who can be hard to find," said Lana Beckett, editor of Prop 65 Clearinghouse, a San Francisco newsletter that has tracked 1,800 cases since 2005.

"Most companies settle or just get the lead out when we threaten to sue," said Michael Green, director the Center for Environmental Health in Oakland, which got Target to phase out lead-laced polyvinyl chloride (PVC) in a lunch box.

Bill Verick, a Eureka, Calif., attorney took on Target and holiday decorations makers. The culprit is plastic coating used as wire insulation. Manufacturers for years used lead as a PVC stabilizer to extend cord life.

The California threshold for a warning label is 10 micrograms per deciliter of blood. A swipe of the cord left 0.5 micrograms.

"An adult will wash their hands, but a child sees decorations as so mystical they can't keep their hands off," he said. "Then they put their fingers in their mouth."

Mark Albright can be reached at albright@sptimes.com or (727) 893-8252.

The warning

Handling the plastic used in this product exposes you to lead, a chemical known to the State of California to cause birth defectsand other reproductive harm.Wash hands after use.

On the lookout for lead

Eight in 10 shoppers are aware of lead paint toy recalls from China and 77 percent of them said it will affect their holiday toy buying, says Maritz Research, a St. Louis market research firm. Here's how:

38 percent check labels for ingredients and origin.

22 percent won't buy toys from China, which puts virtually all the toy department off-limits.

9 percent will buy only American-made toys, so a lot of kids will get games or plush toys.

[Last modified November 12, 2007, 23:10:05]