FROM:

Keep Hazardous Products OUT of U.S.

The tide of unsafe imports rises higher. The recalls keep on coming -- poisonous pet food, contaminated fish, brightly painted but toxic toys sold by trusted companies. Last week, WalMart recalled toy farm animals. J.C. Penney recalled Winnie-the-Pooh playsets the week before, all due to lead content.

It is time for Congress to take decisive action to protect all of us -- especially our children -- from contaminated food and hazardous products before they enter the marketplace.

We can't afford to wait any longer! The holiday season is nearly here. Americans will soon buy millions of toys and gifts, as well as food and drink for holiday feasting.

Help keep your loved ones safe this holiday season -- fill out the form below to send a message urging your members of Congress to act now.

MESSAGE BODY to local congressman

"The recent flood of unsafe Chinese imports into the U.S.--contaminated pet food, lead-laden toys, hazardous tires, contaminated seafood, and unsafe electrical items--clearly shows that we are not stopping unsafe products at our borders.

It's time to pass legislation to hold manufacturers, importers and retailers to a higher standard and effectively enforce that standard.

Companies don't always know if products manufactured overseas are safe--unless they inspect them first. Companies must hire independent, government certified inspectors to ensure that imports meet U.S. safety standards. Products should be tested in the foreign factories and at our ports--before they wind up on U.S. shelves. And retailers must be required to remove all recalled products from shelves promptly, post prominent recall notices, and spot check products for safety. The retailer is the last stop before a product goes in my cart and must play a role in assuring my family's safety.

The U.S. limited the lead in paint in 1978 and in jewelry in 2005--yet millions of lead-painted toys have been recalled in just the past three months. Last year, a child died after swallowing a small lead trinket. Although we know that lead is very toxic, the U.S. does not currently ban lead in all toys. How many more such items may still be sitting in stores around the country with nothing to warn a parent of the danger?

Today's testing and inspection programs for products aren't working. We need higher standards and more enforcement to ensure the safety of our products. If importers, distributors, and retailers were held accountable for product safety, the nature of the way they do business would change dramatically.

But we won't be able to enforce higher standards with the weakened federal infrastructure we have today. Food recalls today are "voluntary" so the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has to negotiate its recall requests with companies, wasting time while people like me continue to buy up the tainted food. We need to be sure that the government can demand the quick removal of unsafe products from the shelves.

U.S. imports from foreign countries nearly doubled since 2000, while the funding for food and product inspection agencies went down or stayed the same. Compared to when it opened its doors in 1973, today's Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is half its original size in both staff and resources. Today's FDA manages to inspect only one percent of all food imports! With so little enforcement, companies that want to risk importing shoddy, unsafe products know they may well get away with it. We can do better.

Please help restore my confidence in the safety of the items in my cart."

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LINK to fill out and e-mail letter to congress

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