From the New York Times: Mattel

"The recall, the second biggest this year involving toys, covers 83 different products, manufactured between April 19 and July 6. Many of them feature “Sesame Street” and Nickelodeon characters — including the Elmo Tub Sub, the Dora the Explorer Backpack, and the Giggle Gabber, a toy shaped like Elmo or Cookie Monster that toddlers shake to hear giggles and funny noises.

Mattel says it prevented more than two-thirds of the 967,000 affected toys from reaching consumers by contacting retailers, like Wal-Mart, Target and Toys ‘R’ Us, late last week. But more than 300,000 of the tainted toys have been purchased by consumers in the United States."

And, of course, the toys were made in China.

By Crystal915 on Wednesday, August 1, 2007 - 10:55 pm:

Sigh... I can't find a comprehensive list of the toys, and we own some Dora and Diego stuff. Thanks for the heads-up!!

By Nicki on Thursday, August 2, 2007 - 03:03 am:

Thanks, Ginny.
Unreal. I don't understand how this happens. I mean, aren't the products checked for this type of thing once shipped to the U.S.?

By Ginny~moderator on Thursday, August 2, 2007 - 06:22 am:

I will give Mattel credit - they recovered about 2/3 of these toys before they hit the market and are trying diligently to recover the rest. Yes, a comprehensive list would be really helpful. Unhappily, even if a list comes out with identifying numbers, who keeps the boxes after opening a kid's toy?

I believe all or almost all of Mattel/Fisher-Price toys are made in China, and at least half of them are made in plants owned entirely by Mattel and entirely under Mattel supervision. This problem arose in a "contract" plant, not one Mattel owns. The question Mattel is trying to resolve is whether the contract plant deliberately bought paint from other than an approved supplier, or whether the supplier deliberately supplied non-spec (i.e., lead containing) paint for a higher profit.

By Ginny~moderator on Thursday, August 2, 2007 - 06:27 am:

List: Here's the link to the Consumer Product Safety site with the list of recalled toys:

Mattel recall

By Kernkate on Thursday, August 2, 2007 - 07:47 am:

Thanks Ginny

By Amecmom on Thursday, August 2, 2007 - 09:43 am:

Once again - like the Thomas train recall - there are just so many! You actually have to ingest the lead paint to be harmful, right? It's not like lead -based house paint that can turn into dust over time, is it?
Since I don't have "eaters" I don't think I'm going to worry about it. I will just make sure I don't donate the toys anywhere.
Ame

By Yjja123 on Thursday, August 2, 2007 - 06:37 pm:

Ame---I believe that handling lead paint can cause some symptoms. You do not need to eat it to have contamination.

By Amecmom on Friday, August 3, 2007 - 12:27 pm:

I thought back and realized that all these items I have were purchased way before the dates indicated in the recall. Glad this is something I don't have to deal with.
Ame