Mattel sorry for unsafe Chinese-made toys

WASHINGTON, Sept. 12 (UPI) -- Mattel Inc.'s chief executive officer Wednesday apologized to Congress for letting unsafe Chinese toys into the United States and defended the massive recall.

"I, like you, care deeply about the safety of children," Robert Eckert told a Senate subcommittee. "I can’t change the past, but I can change how we do things."

Eckert admitted his El Segundo, Calif., company had not monitored Chinese subcontractors closely enough to avoid the Aug. 14 recall of 19 million toys worldwide, due to illegally high amounts of lead paint and small magnets.

Senate Appropriations subcommittee members called for a revamping of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, giving it formal power to ban lead in all children’s products, The New York Times reported.

They also proposed giving the 35-year-old agency more funds to increase the number of inspectors at the nation’s ports and a better-equipped and -staffed laboratory to test toys and other consumer goods.

Mattel, the largest U.S. toy company, and other members of the Toy Industry Association have promised to support a federal mandate that toys be tested by independent laboratories before they are sold.

Toys "R" Us Chairman Gerald Storch said product codes should be clearly printed onto toys so parents can more easily identify a recalled product.