TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Mattel's Apology Accepted

ADVERTISEMENT

By AUDRA ANG, The Associated Press

Published: September 25, 2007

BEIJING - China's state media on Monday welcomed U.S. toy maker Mattel's apology over its recalls of Chinese-made toys, saying that although overdue it should help restore the country's sullied export reputation.
Mattel apologized in Beijing on Friday for recalling 21 million toys this summer, the majority of which had small magnets that could fall out and be harmful to children if swallowed.
Mattel acknowledged the problem was a design flaw - not the fault of Chinese manufacturers.

However, the recalls also included hundreds of thousands of toys found to be decorated with hazardous lead-tainted paint. Mattel said it pulled more of those toys off shelves than necessary and made Chinese manufacturers look bad.
Mattel said it understood and appreciated the 'issues that this has caused for the reputation of Chinese manufacturers.'

'The apology, though delayed, should help dispel the suspicion American customers harbor against Chinese-made products and clean up the stain the recalls left on the innocent Chinese workers who make a living doing honest labor,' the China Daily newspaper reported.

The state-run Guangzhou Daily said in an editorial Monday that Mattel's apology was a little late 'but at least it redressed injustice against toys made in China.'

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT