The European Commission said Thursday it was preparing a new regulation requiring toys containing magnets to carry a mandatory warning label across the European Union (EU).
The proposed rule, which was approved by EU product safety experts today, will cover all "magnetic toys." i.e. toys that contain or consist of loose or detachable magnets, or magnetic components of such size and shape which can be swallowed by children.
In order to be marketed in the EU, such toys will have to be marked with an adequate warning, which will detail the risks linked to the presence of magnets or magnetic components that are accessible to children, and the warning must be clear and readable, the Commission said.
Currently, there are no specific rules or standards covering magnetic toys at EU level. They are only administrated by the general EU requirement that toys placed on the market pose no health or safety threat.
The proposal came after several toy makers issued major recalls of toys containing magnets, most prominently Mattel which, during the summer of 2007, recalled about 18 million Chinese-made toys on a global scale.
Under EU procedures, the proposal will be submitted to the European Parliament for scrutiny, after which it is expected to be formally adopted by the Commission in early April. EU member states will then have three months to ensure that all magnetic toys carry a warning label.
Meglena Kuneva, EU Commissioner for Consumers, said the new warning label rule is a temporary measure and the Commission was also asking the EU standardization authority to revise the relevant European standards in order to cover the specific risks related to small magnets in toys.
A revised standard may come out as early as next summer.
Source: Xinhua
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