CSI: The Kitchen

A six-month investigation into the cause of last fall’s E. coli outbreak turned up … well, a lot, but not the cause of last fall’s E. coli outbreak.

The 50-page report detailed a crime-scene-style analysis of the fields, the processing plants, and the codes on bags of baby spinach. Investigators used DNA fingerprinting to match bacteria from the bags with samples taken from various growing sites, and eventually zeroed in on the responsible field.

While the team was able to identify risk factors — “contamination at or near the field included the presence of wild pigs, the proximity of irrigation wells used to grow produce for ready-to-eat packaging, and surface waterways exposed to feces from cattle and wildlife” — they couldn’t identify precisely how the contamination originated.

That doesn’t mean there are no lessons for food growers and processors, regulators, or those of us who eat the stuff.

The most important lesson for consumers is that ready-to-eat can be anything but. Although the FDA concedes that “washing produce would not have prevented the recent E. coli outbreak involving spinach,” washing can reduce risks from some other causes.

The FDA advises washing all produce thoroughly before eating, and we agree. But we also think that regulations, oversight, and inspections need to be beefed up. Current voluntary standards are clearly ineffective; what we need are strict and mandatory standards on farms and at the processing plant to reassure us that eating fresh veggies really is good for us.

Theme park exhibits, web sites prove safety can be fun

Who says safety isn't fun?  During a recent visit to Walt Disney World in Orlando, I found that learning about safety can be entertaining — or, to use a word that is increasingly popular these days, “edutaining.”

I visited the Liberty Mutual exhibit “Where’s the Fire” at Epcot. The 4,000-square-foot exhibit features an interactive game house where guests are challenged to find and then eliminate home fire hazards. You can compete against other teams as you from run room to room with a flashlight looking for the safety hazards. Shine your flashlight on the hazard to score points. The team with the most points wins.      

By chance, my Disney World visit coincided with an announcement that Underwriters Laboratories has teamed up Disney to develop a youth safety curriculum for schools. “We don’t just want to teach little ditties and clichés but truly impact the safety consciousness of our youth, to empower them to be safety smart,” said Barbara Guthrie, UL’s director of consumer affairs. The first products of this new joint venture will be released next year: two DVDs for kindergarteners to second graders, featuring Timon and Pumbaa from "The Lion King" as “safety ambassadors.” A middle-school program is also planned, teaching safety as part of science lessons. Disney will help promote this "Wild About Safety" program through Radio Disney and features in its resorts and theme parks. 

Like Liberty Mutual, UL also sponsors a pavilion at Epcot. They have interactive displays that show how products are use- and abuse-tested for safety.   

No trip to a theme park in your future? They may not be Webkinz, but these sites have a host of fun, interactive safety-related games:

• BeFireSmart.com, part of Liberty Mutual’s online fire-safety program for parents and kids. Even grown-ups may be stymied by its child-friendly spot-the-fire-hazard test on How Fast Can You Spot Trouble.
• Sparky the Fire Dog and National Fire Protection Association have a slew of bold, fun games. 
• Smokey Kids also has interactive games and fun facts (did you know that one large tree can provide a day’s oxygen for four people?) about the forest and the danger of fires.
• U.S. Fire Administration For Kids Web site is a little more cerebral, with crossword, word search, and matching piece games.

Know of other safety Web sites that deserve our attention? Let us know.

— Don Mays

10 tips to keep spring cleaning safe

With spring now upon us, we thought now might be a good time for a refresher on some seasonal safety issues. As part of Consumer Reports' Spring Cleaning Guide, we're offering a set of safety tips, including 10 ways to reduce your exposure to hazardous chemicals, such as those in some common cleaning products. Toilet cleaners, for example, can contain hydrochloric acid, which can also burn skin. Oven cleaners can contain sodium hydroxide and potassium hydroxide, both of which are extremely corrosive to eyes, skin, and lungs. And scouring powder may contain chlorine bleach, which should never be mixed with other cleaners because of the risk of forming toxic gases. You can find the full set of tips here. And, no, we still haven't found a suitable replacement for one vital cleaning ingredient: elbow grease.

More lead recalls as CPSC moves ahead on limited ban

Sadly, it's not surprising that in the same week that the Consumer Product Safety Commission closed the comment period for its preliminary proposal to limit lead in children's jewelry the agency also announced that three more children's products would be recalled due to this toxic metal.  Elite Operations toy sets, a military-style set of action figures, light-and-sound vehicles, and other accessories, contain high levels of lead in the paint. They also contain parts that pose a laceration hazard. The toys were sold at Toys "R" Us from January 2006 through early February 2007. 

Also recalled are children's Mood Necklaces, that have multi-colored pendants shaped as hearts, crosses, moons, feet, stars, dolphins, shamrocks, teardrops, spiders, flip-flop sandals, and butterflies that hang from a black cord. The necklaces are imported by United Imports, Inc., and sold exclusively at Accessories Palace in Lake Worth, Fla., and the Accessories Palace Web site, from September 2006 through February 2007 for about $1. Another set of necklaces, sold by the Claire's Boutiques chain, was also recalled. These included pendants with a variety of symbols and letters, including monkeys, dolphins, and frogs holding colored marbles, a fleur de lis painted in various colors, a silver and black fairy, silver-colored letters “BFF” with rhinestones, and tiny handcuffs painted in various colors.

The recalls advise anyone who has these items to take them away from children immediately. 

Clearly, recalls are having little effect on the flow of lead-bearing children's products into the marketplace. For every item that gets caught, countless others continue to be sold, putting children at risk of lead poisoning that might not be identified in time by their families and physicians. 

The CPSC took the first step toward banning lead in children's jewelry in 2006, when they announced a plan to ban children's metal jewelry that contains more than 0.06% lead by weight. We don't think that goes far enough. 

In our comments on the CPSC's proposed rule, we urged the agency to broaden the scope and ban or limit lead in all children's products. Consumers Union also urges the CPSC to work in concert with — and not preempt — stronger state actions. 

Until more effective safeguards are in place, we continue to recommend parents avoid inexpensive children's toy jewelry altogether.

CPSC wants you to read recall alerts (and so do we)

We wholeheartedly applaud the Consumer Product Safety Commission's recently announced promotional effort to bring in 1 million subscribers for its e-mail recall notification service. Acting Chairman Nancy Nord said, "consumers can literally save lives with the click of their computer mouse." As a demonstration of the importance of learning about recalls as soon as they occur, Nord pointed out the case of Selena Patten of Manassas, Va., whose three-year-old daughter nearly choked on a toy nail from Playskool's Team Talkin' Tool Bench. Patten removed the nail from her daughter's mouth, and later discovered that the product had been recalled after the death of two toddlers.  "Get that e-mail that may save your child's life," she said. 

While e-mail may be the most convenient way to get recall information, the CPSC also makes recall notices available in a number of other ways, including RSS feeds, which can be read using many common programs, and can also be incorporated into other Web sites. (We recently added RSS feeds from the CPSC and FDA to the sidebar on this blog.) The CPSC, along with other government agencies, including the FDA, NHTSA, and EPA, also makes recall information available on the recalls.gov web site, and maintains a searchable database of recalls on its own site. However you choose to receive recall data, it won't do you any good if you don't read it. So be sure to check your email, RSS reader or recalls.gov regularly, and follow the recommended steps if you own a recalled product.

A "perc" you can do without

In the better-late-than-never department, we want to take a moment to applaud California for its decision earlier this year to phase out the use of a cancer-causing chemical that’s commonly used in dry-cleaning.   

On January 25, the California Air Resources Board voted to gradually reduce and eventually ban the use of perchloroethylene, or perc, as a solvent used in dry cleaning. Beginning in 2008, no new perc-using machines may be installed in California; By July 2010, dry cleaners must remove all perc machines housed in apartment buildings and other residential facilities. By 2023, perc will no longer be allowed in any California dry-cleaning establishment.   

The 16-year phase out may seem like a long time — but believe us, this rule has been a long time coming for a toxic solvent that, besides cancer, has also been linked to liver and kidney damage in animals and nerve damage in humans. In 1995, Consumer Reports found high perc levels in apartments located above dry cleaning establishments in New York City. In 1996 we tested consumer exposure to freshly dry-cleaned clothes and found there was enough perc in them to significantly increase cancer risk for consumers who wear a lot of dry-cleaned clothes. 

Perc is not just a problem for people living near dry cleaners and wearers of clothes that are dry cleaned. In many communities, perc has contaminated drinking water supplies, often after used dry cleaning solvents were illegally dumped or discarded in leaky landfills. Past federal and state studies have found that as much as 25% of drinking water supplies and nearly 40% of surface waters tested in the US are contaminated with Perc. 

California's proposed phase-out would not be possible if not for over a decade of research and testing of alternative professional dry cleaning methods. The federal Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Design for the Environment program played a significant role in the development of water-based and liquid carbon dioxide technologies, offered by a growing number of cleaners. Consumer Reports tested carbon dioxide-based cleaning systems in 2003, and found the results to be better than traditional dry-cleaning. Another green process, using silicone, was almost as good. 

The EPA issued a rule last summer requiring dry cleaners operating in residential buildings to stop buying any new perc machines and phase out using existing ones by the end of 2020.  That’s a good start. But we’d like to see the EPA limit perc’s use once and for all — for every state in the country. In the meantime, consumers can help by seeking out facilities that use perc-free dry cleaning methods. 

This EPA guide gives locations and phone numbers of cleaners who use the carbon dioxide method. You can also find cleaners who offer silicone-solvent cleaning here.

You can find more information about green cleaning options at Consumer Reports' GreenerChoices.org.

Poison Control Centers: A vital, fragile resource

This week is National Poison Prevention Week, and we’d like to give thanks to the nation’s Poison Control Centers. 

Those of us who have called the 1-800-222-1222 hotline when our children (or even our pets) have swallowed something worrisome are already indebted to the medical professionals who staff these centers.   

If you’re lucky enough not to have needed to make that call, consider these numbers: 

1. In 2006, the 61 U.S. poison centers handled more than 2.5 million reports. 
2. Poisoning is the second most common form of unintentional death in the U.S. In any given year, there will be between 2 and 4 million poison exposures, 60 percent involving children under 6 in their own home. 
3. More than 70 percent of the cases handled by the poison centers were managed safely at home, resulting in dramatic cost savings — estimated at nearly a billion dollars in 2005 — over visits to the emergency room. 

But the willingness of the American public to keep funding the centers is uncertain. Richard Weisman, the American Association of Poison Control Centers' legislative affairs director and director of the Florida Poison Center in Miami, notes that the centers are funded by a patchwork of federal, state, local, and private sources. This network is particularly fragile in times of financial cutbacks. In 2003, Congress authorized an annual appropriation of $30.1 million for the centers. But in actuality they only received less than $24 million in funding for the 2007 fiscal year, and the Bush administration is proposing a further drop of 58 percent for the 2008 fiscal year. 

Such a cut, said Weisman, “would be catastrophic,” and could result in “almost complete elimination of education and prevention efforts. Many of centers would have to reduce their hours of operation and reduce the number of doctors, nurses, and pharmacists to answer the phone.” The result could be lots of busy signals and unanswered emergency calls. “The bottom line will be significant,” with an increase in deaths, predominantly children. 

And if it’s your call that goes unanswered?

This is not a drill

Advance planning can mean the difference between life or death in a household fire

• Saturday, Feb. 24: Two Boston college students die in a fire started by a candle.
• Saturday, March 3: Three children die in a Claxton, Ga. fire; the suspected cause is a space heater.
• Wednesday, March 7: Nine children and one adult die in a fire that sweeps through a four-story building in the Bronx. Again, a space heater is believed to be the cause.
• Saturday, March 10: Four adults die in a Chicago fire; arson is alleged.

Day after day, week after week, we are hearing about one horrific fire after another. In the first three weeks of February alone, at least 200 people were reported killed in home fires. While the exact causes of these fires differ, the fatalities underscore the importance of prevention and pre-emergency planning. And by prevention we don’t just mean checking your appliances and electrical cords — or making sure your smoke detectors are working. Those, of course, are important first steps. But we also want to encourage families to develop an escape plan and review it with every family member — frequently. As we all remember from grade school, getting out quickly can be the difference between life and death. We don’t need the deaths of children in the Bronx to remind of us that.

In fact, fire safety officials say you could have as little as two minutes to get out of the house once the alarm sounds. But according to the National Fire Protection Association, a nonprofit international standard-setting organization, only one-fifth to one-fourth of all households have actually drafted and practiced an evacuation plan.

It’s not hard to do and the NFPA has some good tips to get you started. They include:

• Pull together everyone in your household and make a plan. Walk through your home and inspect all possible exits and escape routes. 
• Everyone in the household must understand the escape plan. When you walk through your plan, check to make sure the escape routes are clear and doors and windows can be opened easily. 
• Choose an outside meeting place a safe distance in front of your home where everyone can meet after they've escaped. 
• Once you're out, stay out! Under no circumstances should you ever go back into a burning building.

In planning an emergency evacuation, remember that research has shown that children younger than 16 may not reliably wake up when the alarm goes off. So fire safety officials advise parents to conduct a fire escape drill either late at night or early in the morning to find out if their children are awakened by and able to respond to the sound of a smoke alarm. (The NFPA recommends holding a household fire drill twice a year.) For those children who do not respond, parents will need to make sure they get assistance in waking and getting out of the house.

Also remember that the elderly and infirm may need extra help in getting out as well.

Spring forward with a safety check

Daylight saving time starts three weeks early this year (the official start time is Sunday, March 11th at 2 a.m.). But that doesn't mean you should be caught by surprise. When you're resetting your watches and clocks (don't forget the one in your car), use this annual event as a reminder to perform the tasks outlined below. They'll enhance safety for you and your family year-round.

Replace batteries in all smoke and carbon-monoxide alarms. Always use fresh batteries, not those you "borrow" from other equipment. And follow manufacturer's instructions to ensure that these essential devices are working properly. Also, replace any smoke alarm that's 10 or more years old and any CO alarm 5 or more years old with a new model. You'll find the manufacture date on the alarm. See our report on carbon-monoxide alarms and our exclusive interactive on smoke alarms for more information. (The CO report and Ratings are available to subscribers).

Reset clocks on appliances and electronics. Some newer appliances and electronics are equipped with a microchip that automatically resets clock displays at the beginning and end of DST; many of those may still need to be reset manually this year, due to the change in schedule (and you may need to reset them again in three weeks, when they "think" they're supposed to reset themselves). To facilitate the process, make a list of all devices that you need to reset manually: clocks, TVs, DVDs players/VCRs, fax machines, cameras, and thermostats. (It's especially important to reprogram your thermostat so that the heat in your home switches on and off at the right time.)

Reset everything on the list in one session so that no appliance or electronic is forgotten.

Drive safely. Remember, an extra hour of light in the evening means dawn will break an hour later as well. So, if you're an early riser, be extra alert for children and animals.

Inspect vehicle lights. Inspect the entire lighting system in your car to ensure that all lights are working properly. Clean headlights and make sure they are correctly aligned according to the owner's manual.

Update your family disaster plan. To respond properly to a natural disaster or other cataclysmic event, you need to have a plan in place and the necessary supplies on hand, and be prepared to act. See our free emergency guide to preparing for any storm or disaster.

Check storage areas for hazardous materials. Properly dispose of any materials that are outdated, no longer used, or in poor condition. Make sure those you keep are out of the reach of kids or pets.

You can find some more tips on preparing for daylight saving time here.

Congress, CPSC debate resources, budget

While President Bush's announcement that he plans to nominate the National Association of Manufacturers' Michael Baroody to head the CPSC might be grabbing the media spotlight right now, it's far from the only issue confronting the government agency. Earlier this week, the House Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government held a hearing about the agency, focusing on one key issue: Does the CPSC have sufficient resources to do its job?

At the Feb. 28 hearing, members of Congress and consumer advocates expressed concern over the agency’s proposed fiscal 2008 budget of $63.25 million. As we’ve recently discussed, although that’s a boost of $880,000 from this year’s budget, it’s too small an increase to cover mandated salary increases. So the budget really means the CPSC will have to trim its currently approved staff of 420 full-time employees to 401.

“How are we to continue ... to be able to feel safe if the Commission has less people to do the work?" asked Subcommittee chairman Rep. José Serrano (D-N.Y., pictured above, left). Meanwhile, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) criticized the agency for no longer including childhood drowning deaths as a top strategic priority, partly because of limited resources.   

Drownings are the number two accidental killer of children ages 1 to 14 in the U.S., Wasserman Schultz told acting CPSC chair Nancy Nord. “I don’t know how you can honestly say you can make do, when you have to make a decision like that.” 

Nord (above, right) defended the agency’s budget, noting that the agency issued a record number of recalls last year — despite a shrinking staff. (In 2005, the agency had 471 full-time employees). And this year, Nord added, the agency is “well on the way to exceeding” last year’s record. “Our staff is working flat out and we are achieving very good” results, Nord said. Reducing childhood drowning is still a top priority, she added, but no longer a “strategic one” in which results will be statistically measured.   

That’s not to say Nord did not have concerns. She said the brain drain that’s occurred at the CPSC as experienced employees leave “is something I worry about an awful lot.” And, she said, “the thing that keeps me up at night worrying” are new issues and technology, such as nanotechnology, and the challenges they pose to the CPSC staff. 

Another challenge, she noted are imports from China. Two thirds of recalled products are imports and two-thirds of these are from China.   

But to Janell Mayo Duncan, senior counsel for Consumers Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports, “the single greatest challenge inhibiting the fulfillment of [the CPSC's] mission … is the lack of adequate funding.” In her testimony before the subcommittee, she said: “The CPSC is being starved of critical resources at a time when the Commission is tasked with addressing increasing threats to consumer safety, including dangers affecting children, such as dangerous non-compliant toys, and the presence of lead in children’s jewelry. This situation is unconscionable.” 

Rachel Weintraub, director of product safety and senior counsel for the Consumer Federation of America, also testified. Noting that the CPSC has suffered a steady decline in staffing — the agency had 786 full-time employees when it was founded in 1974 and a high of 978 in 1980 — Weintraub called the proposed budget “death by a thousand cuts.” While that phrase “originally derives from an outlawed form of Chinese torture, it also aptly describes the numerous cuts to full time employees, structural improvements and programmatic goals that the CPSC’s budget has endured,” she said.

Needless to say, we'll be awaiting comments from putative nominee Baroody on the CPSC's budget and personnel issues.