Vinyl Institute Warns Parents Against False Greenpeace Information

MORRISTOWN, New Jersey, November 26, 1998 – The Vinyl Institute today issued a warning to parents that information being distributed by Greenpeace regarding toys is false or misleading and could prompt parents to purchase unsafe toys for their children.

Greenpeace’s nationally issued statement that non-vinyl toys pose "no hazard, whatsoever" is totally without supporting research, said Mark Sofman, vinyl industry spokesman. "We cannot believe that Greenpeace would be so reckless as to suggest that only non-vinyl toys pose no risk whatsoever and that only non-vinyl toys contain no substance harmful to lab animals. But that is exactly what they did in their frenzied attack on vinyl."

Sofman said vinyl is one of the world’s most studied materials: "Common sense and history tell parents that vinyl toys are safe, since in the forty or more years that vinyl toys have been a favorite plaything of children, there is no evidence of any child being harmed by them."

Greenpeace issued a statement earlier this week with several erroneous statements and several others with no scientific evidence, Sofman explained. He said:

• Greenpeace was flatly wrong in saying that vinyl requires "toxic chemicals (e.g. phthalates) to make it pliable and a heavy metal (e.g. lead) to keep it stable." Additives cleared by the Food and Drug Administration for use as coatings on pharmaceuticals can be used to make vinyl pliable and there are other additives, including those based on calcium, an essential nutrient, that can be used for stability.

• Greenpeace was guilty of intentionally confusing parents by mixing information on toys for infants with information on other children’s products and by not differentiating between a baby’s exposure to a teether versus a raincoat.

• Greenpeace was hypocritical in praising Health Canada for its recommendation that small babies not use teethers with phthalates and ignoring Health Canada’s position that very low levels of lead in some children’s products pose no threat at all.

"Parents should say ‘Show me the evidence!’ when anyone claims risks to children," Sofman contended. "No hard science and no sick children – what is the reason to scare parents about their children’s toys? I think it’s a shameful performance, the kind that gives sincere environmentalists a bad name."

Sofman said perhaps the greatest mistake that Greenpeace has made in the toy debate has been to suggest that non-vinyl toys pose "no hazard, whatsoever."

"I challenge Greenpeace to produce the science that supports that outlandish statement. To the best of our knowledge, they have done absolutely no research on non-vinyl toys," Sofman said. "If they have it, they should produce it.

"On the other hand, an exhaustive Dutch study on phthalates shows that vinyl toys with phthalates are clearly safe for children. That study of phthalate exposure from vinyl toys for children less than 12 months said the possibility of a baby exceeding the recommended limit was "so rare that the statistical likelihood cannot be estimated."

Sofman again took issue with the Greenpeace tactic of mixing references to toys and other children’s products which he said "is intended to make parents think that vinyl toys have lead and cadmium in them. This is blatantly false. Since 1978, the Consumer Products Safety Commission has prohibited lead in toys and neither it nor cadmium is used to make toys here. Very small amounts of lead are sometimes used in other children’s products – for example, backpacks, raincoats, and totebags."

To exceed the safe limit for such use, as established by the Consumer Products Safety Commission, a child would have to bite off and swallow a substantial piece of plastic every day for a year. The Greenpeace allegations that such products are unsafe was reviewed in 1997 by both the CPSC and the Product Safety Bureau of Health Canada. Both agencies disagreed with Greenpeace and concluded that lead and cadmium were not released in harmful amounts from the products. In addition, an analysis of Greenpeace’s claims by the scientific research firm ENVIRON Corporation of Arlington, Va., said that Greenpeace "misinterpreted or misrepresented their own data."

"We understand why parents are concerned, especially when you consider the amount of misinformation being spread by Greenpeace. But we strongly support a parent’s decision not to use a product if he or she feels it is not safe or appropriate for their child," Sofman said. "Most important, we want all parents to know they can buy, use or keep their current toys without any fear about the safety of their child. Vinyl toys are good toys and good for children. That’s the truth of the matter."

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