New Safety Rules Pose Problems For Toymakers

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Worries over lead paint in mass-market toys
made the holidays a little brighter for handcrafted toy makers last
year.
But the federal government's response to the scare has some
workshops fearful that this Christmas might be their last.
Without changes to strict new safety rules, they say,
mom-and-pop toy makers and retailers could be forced to conduct
testing and labeling they can't afford, even if they use materials
as benign as unfinished wood, organic cotton and beeswax.
Under the law, all children's products must be tested for lead
and other harmful substances. Toy makers are required to pay a
third-party lab for the testing.
Julia Chen's shop in Palo Alto, California, specializes in
wooden and organic playthings. She says it's ironic that companies
which never violated the public trust are now being threatened.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)