Consumer Agency to Launch Campaign Against Hazardous Children’s Jewelry

January 10, 2010

Los Angeles - Following a media report revealing the presence of a cancer-causing metal in some children’s jewelry imported from China, a federal consumer agency on Monday said it will launch a campaign to prevent hazardous products from reaching the country.

According to an AP report, some low-priced children’s pendants, charms, and bracelets have high levels of cadmium, a whitish metal which is considered to be more harmful than lead and may cause cancer and kidney problems.

Because there is a federal ban on the use of lead in children’s products, some Chinese manufacturers use cadmium as a substitute. This metal, which is naturally found in soil, is cheaper and easier to work with than lead and other metals used in plastic products.

In a statement, US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) head Inez Tenenbaum has urged other countries to ban manufacturers from substituting lead with cadmium, barium, antimony, and other metals which are also harmful to children.

Tenenbaum also said they will immediately conduct an investigation to prevent hazardous products, especially children’s costume jewelry, “from being sold to the market.”

Currently, there is no federal ban on the use of cadmium in jewelry despite of an upward trend in complaints on products containing this metal.