Despite the media hype over the past few years about toys and other children’s products with excessive levels of lead paint, large numbers of toys and children’s clothing with excessive levels of lead continued to be sold in 2009. A number of these products were recalled in 2009 after testing revealed lead in excess of federal standards. The media devoted a great deal attention to recalls of toys, largely due to the controversy around Chinese manufacturers exporting large numbers of products into the United States that exceeded federal standards for lead.
Some of the items recalled due to high levels of lead include American Greetings Corporation DesignWare Sport Balls, DND Imports Dinosaur Play Sets, SportsPlay Equipment Inc. Playgrounds, Zebco Brands Children’s Fishing Poles and MacPherson Young Artist Easels. The largest scale recall for excessive lead content was for FloraCraft Solar System Kits and DNA Kits, of which 930,000 units were recalled. The total number of different products recalled by the CPSC for lead content so far in 2009 is 26. Due to the latent onset of injuries caused by lead poisoning, there were no incidents of injuries or deaths reported in connection with these recalls. Most of the recalls occurred as a result of routine lead testing.