Chinese manufacturers lose the blame game
- Source: Global Times
- [23:13 January 21 2010]
- Comments
For the last two years, however, there has been a steady growth in the exporting of products containing cadmium. Between 2007 and 2009 the percentage of products containing cadmium rose nearly 450 percent. How do we know this? Agencies like HealthyStuff. org routinely test thousands of products every year.
It's been no secret that manufacturers are using the metal, but what changed to make them begin exporting it? In 2008 the Wall Street Journal published an article discussing the carcinogenic effects of cadmium. This prompted retailers to stop carrying nickel/ cadmium batteries – the largest market for the metal – which, in turn, caused a huge drop in the price of cadmium.
At nearly the same time the US Federal government passed laws restricting the use of lead in products designed for kids. The law had some very sparse rules concerning cadmium, mostly involving products that are painted (cadmium, like lead, has been used in paint for decades), but nothing that clearly defined it as something that couldn't be used.
Chinese factories are a lot like Burger King – they do it your way. If you want something that's high quality and made of the best materials you'll get it as long as you can pay for it. And if you want something cheap and shoddy, well, they can do that too.
Take a look at it from the factory's perspective for a moment. You have a manufacturing process you've been using domestically for years because of its simplicity and low cost. There's nothing ethically wrong with it. In fact, your own children probably wear similar jewelry.
A foreign distributor comes along and asks for the same thing. You review the relevant laws and find that there's nothing illegal about it, even after noticing that they discuss the materials you are using. You take the order, happy that you don't have to worry about all of the problems that came from using lead. Life is good.
The factory owners legitimately didn't think they were doing anything wrong.
Distributors asked for this manufacturing process, consumer watchdogs tested and tracked the product and the US government didn't get in anyone's way. And in the end the distributor, the watchdog and the government are able to act completely aghast when the news industry discovers what happened and makes it the next national crisis facing our youth.
Because, in the end, the Chinese factories can take the blame.
The author is a Beijing-based freelance writer. globaltimesopinion@yahoo.com
