Congressional Toy Safety Hearings: Where’s Wal-Mart?

As Congressional hearings commence to investigate the dangerous Chinese toy recalls, the House and Senate are calling some of the industry’s largest players to testify about their roles in the process. Mattel, Toys “R” Us, the Toy Industry Association and others are all testifying at a U.S. Senate hearing on “Toy Safety Standards.” But we won’t hear from the biggest name of all -- Wal-Mart -- which has used is political power to shift blame to suppliers and avoid taking responsibility for its role in the massive toy recall scandal.
Wal-Mart recently launched its “toy safety net” program, but it is noticeably vague on testing requirements and details. While the public focus is currently on lead paint, many recalls have occurred due to other hazards. In addition, Wal-Mart’s primary testing laboratory, Consumer Testing Laboratories, lacks both NRTL and A2LA accreditations, is headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas, and by all accounts, gets 80-90% of its business from Wal-Mart. Can it really be considered third party “independent testing?”

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