CHINA-FREE PRODUCTS: 3 deaths spur recall of China Made cribs

CHINA-FREE

DEFINITION chi-na-free adj. A term proposed for use on food labels to show that products are not made in China.

CONTEXT In light of recent health and safety scares regarding Chinese-made food and products, a U.S.-based company called Food for Health International has announced plans to put "China-free" stickers on its goods. The subtext: These products won't make you sick or have harmful contaminants like melamine.

USAGE Given recent recalls of items from toys to toothpaste, China-free labeling could catch on, though consumers would do well to remember that not all products from China are tainted and not all tainted products are from China.

Friday, September 28, 2007

3 deaths spur recall of China Made cribs

1 million Graco, Simplicity beds called back after kids entrapped, suffocated after rails were improperly installed. The maker of Simplicity and Graco cribs on Friday recalled about 1 million of the beds after mishaps that led to the deaths of three infants. "Don't take a chance at all," said Scott Wolfson, a spokesman for the Consumer Product Safety Commission, which announced the voluntary recall by Reading, Pa.-based Simplicity Inc., one of the largest U.S. crib manufacturers. "If you are a parent or caregiver that has one of these cribs impacted by these recalls, your baby should not sleep in that crib tonight." The cribs, which were made in China and sold at major retailers nationwide, feature a "drop-side" railing that can pull away from the mattress. Infants can become trapped in the resulting gap and suffocate. Read Full Story