Smithsonian Magazine: The Toxic Truth Behind Mardi Gras Beads, an article from 2017.

My “favorite” quote from the article:

To see several sets of Mardi Gras beads that I have tested, Click Here.

Smithsonian Magazine Article
Published: March 8, 2017
By: David Redmon

“Every year, 25 million pounds of plastic beads made by Chinese factory workers get dumped on the streets of New Orleans.

Shiny, colorful bead necklaces, also known as “throws,” are now synonymous with Mardi Gras.

Even if you’ve never been to the Carnival celebrations, you probably know the typical scene that plays out on New Orleans’ Bourbon Street every year: Revelers line up along the parade route to collect beads tossed from floats. Many try to collect as many as possible, and some drunken revelers will even expose themselves in exchange for the plastic trinkets.

But the celebratory atmosphere couldn’t be more different from the grim factories in the Fujian province of China, where teenage girls work around the clock making and stringing together the green, purple and gold beads.” [Click here to Continue Reading.]

Click the image below to read the full article.