July 6, 2022 – Wednesday
Warning: Language – I’m Furious 😉
On June 9, 2022 the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced a recall (see the image above) of the “Jungle Jumparoo” toy for a violation of the Federal Lead Content Ban. The Lead Safe Mama, LLC team was responsible for discovering that components of a specific manufacturing batch of this product were painted with high-Lead-content paint and – in response to those findings – we were also responsible for initiating this recall (you can see the full exchange with the manufacturer including our CPSC violation report below.)
Maybe I’m just a jaded pessimist.
Maybe I should just be happy with each little step forward we (together you – Lead Safe Mama readers – and I) make in this journey towards protecting children from Lead exposure — but when we discover and report a CPSC Lead paint violation in 2020 and the formal / official recall of the product is not issued until the summer of 2022 (18 months and one week and two days later)… well – I just want to throw in the towel!
I’m so frustrated with the system.
I COULD just be writing today about how amazing this is — “look what we did!” But I am having trouble ignoring the little voice in my head pointing out that it is just the latest example in a seemingly endless series (one more anecdote, one more story) where I happen to have the “inside scoop” illustrating how f**king s l o w our government works in its tepid, plodding efforts to protect our children — and therefore how damn broken the patchwork of bureaucratic, under-funded, under-staffed, inefficient, porous, partially-captured, one-hand-tied-behind-their-backs “consumer protection system” here in the U.S. (always has been and still) is!
To learn more about the specific FORMAL OFFICIAL CPSC recall – read on! INCLUDING MY FULL EXCHANGE with the company who manufactured the recalled product (an email thread from December 1st and 2nd of 2020) and my full CPSC violation report (linked below.)
VERY Important note:
- This company responded well.
- They were caring.
- They were compassionate.
- They were freaked out that this happened AND they responded quickly and proactively.
- They also demonstrated (through their civility and quick response) that they respected the work we do here at Lead Safe Mama, LLC (and that they believe in and understand the science behind the concerns for Lead and Lead exposure to children and to humans in general.)
#LeadSafeMama’s Rant [to the sound of a slow, repeating drumbeat]: HOWEVER – THIS still never should have happened in the first place (we need to look more closely at “supply chain issues” as a country – when it comes to this sort of thing! [How is it even possible that Lead paint was available to be “accidentally” used on a product like this!]) and MOST IMPORTANT: THE CPSC HAD EVERYTHING THEY NEEDED TO INITIATE A FULL IMMEDIATE / URGENT RECALL in DECEMBER of 2020 (as clearly evidenced by the communication thread below) – but did not issue a recall until MORE THAN EIGHTEEN MONTHS LATER. This is the BIG PROBLEM that I want to shine light on here. THIS is the problem we need to address!
The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission is currently BROKEN! THE Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 is a USELESS piece of legislation if it takes 18+ months to publish a CPSIA violation recall announcement for a Lead-painted children’s toy!
During a global pandemic — when children were playing indoors at home more than ever (careening off the walls and grinding through their days in soul-crushing isolation and anxious boredom heavily leaning on the use of toys like the one recalled) — the CPSC didn’t bother to RUSH this through to issue an immediate recall announcement. [I can almost hear the reasonable-sounding excuses/explanations/justifications…pandemic-related breakdowns, staffing shortages, interruptions/distractions, “larger problems”, political upheaval, yada-yadda…] This is BULLSHIT! This is why WE as parents need to know that we need to ask all the questions ourselves, do testing ourselves [pssst: collaborate with Lead Safe Mama, LLC to do this testing, using the same scientific methodologies that our “watchdog” agencies are supposed to be using to help protect kids!] and (unfortunately) not take the word of companies (even well-meaning companies who state their products are Lead-free) – nor solely rely on the oversight of our government agencies to protect our children.
––> Now imagine… just imagine... if this had been an even-more–serious issue — like a product meant for very young children/infants, painted with Lead paint — with the Lead paint right where those kiddos would put their hands to hold the object — in a product found in virtually every home in America…Just IMAGINE if something like that was not recalled — despite repeated pleas to the agencies tasked with protecting our babies…something like… Lead painted baby bottles! Just imagine if something like that were never recalled! Oh yeah – scratch that, no imagination necessary: read more about the not-recalled Lead painted baby bottles that we also have reported to the CPSC over (and over, and over, and…) the past couple of years here on this link! Parents – let’s generate some outrage on this one! Outrage starts with awareness of a problem — please start by sharing this article on your social media pages, and I will work on some follow-up pieces, too – with coaching on how you can most effectively submit communications to the CPSC to demand recalls for these toxic products! In the meantime here’s the link to submit a CPSC violation report if you own one of the baby bottles of concern linked above! <––
To see what a responsible company looks like… please continue reading below to see the full exchange with the manufacturer of the (selectively) recalled Jungle Jumparoo product (it was a batch specific issue and the details of the recall are listed both on the CPSC recall notice and on the original Lead Safe Mama article – each linked below.)
If you are up to speed on the recent drama here on the Lead Safe Mama website and on Instagram (with both Tabor Place [Lead painted baby bottles], and Primal Life Organics [Leaded toothpaste] – in June of 2022) then you are familiar with what it looks like when a company does not act responsibly in reaction to the findings of the consumer goods testing done by Lead Safe Mama, LLC. In contrast – below, you will see here what it looks like when a RESPONSIBLE Company responds to this work in a RESPONSIBLE and measured / thoughtful way (in contrast to what happened with those other companies!)
I also want to note that this CPSIA violation was discovered during a Lead Safe Mama, LLC one-on-one home consultation with a family. These personalized consultations serve as great tools not only for helping to identify potentially dangerous objects in one family’s home – but also to discover problematic consumer goods that – in fact – might impact hundreds (or thousands) of families – not just the families who I work with directly.
When I discovered the issue: Summer 2020
The date I officially published my findings: December 1, 2020
Click the image below to read my original article
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My initial email to the company
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The company’s initial response
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My first response to their initial response
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Their response to the above
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My response to the above
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In response to the communications above so far
the company’s request that I “take down” my findings
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My response to their request that I “take down” the article (note the time frame is off because we were in different time zones writing to each other) – continue reading below the image
Then I advised the company that they also needed to (were legally required to) report the issue to the CPSC:
December 2, 2020, 8:03 p.m. – continue reading below the image
Then I officially reported this to the CPSC: December 2, 2020 – 8:14 p.m.
Below is my confirmation email in response to the report I filed. If you click the image you can see the PDF of full confirmation of the report that was sent to me. – continue reading below the image
The company filed a report that day as well (as required), and let me know that they did so.
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My response to the above e-mail
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Their response to me (in response to my e-mail above)
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The recall date: June 9, 2022
– The image below is linked directly to the CPSC posting
This is the final image of this article
For those new to this website:
Tamara Rubin is a multiple-Federal-award-winning independent advocate for consumer goods safety and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children. Tamara’s sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in August of 2005. She began testing consumer goods for toxicants in 2009 and was the parent-advocate responsible for finding Lead in the popular fidget spinner toys in 2017. Tamara uses XRF testing (a scientific method used by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission) to test consumer goods for toxicants (specifically heavy metals), including Lead, Cadmium, Mercury, Antimony, and Arsenic. All test results reported on this website are science-based, accurate, and replicable. Items (and separate components) are each tested multiple times, to confirm the test results for each component tested and reported on. Please click through to this link to learn more about the testing methodology used for the test results discussed and reported on this website.
Well done. I hope Jungle Jumparoo rebounded!
I was horrified to read the company wanted YOU to take down your post! How about this company, (who just cares soooo much about it’s customers,) withdraw from sale, and recall all sold product, (as well as any items which used the yellow paint from that supplier) UNTIL they have been proved safe for little children (and their carers) to allow in their homes, and/or care settings. Bah Humbug to the company who is complicit in lead poisoning children, to sell a Christmas present. Further investigation could include the yellow paint supplier and manufacturer, and where else it was sold and used.