The Consumer Product Safety Commission should do more to strengthen regulations related to lead in imported children’s foods, according to a report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO).
The GAO report said it is especially important for the committee to monitor problems at third-party testing labs. The commission verifies certification while inspecting products, but the millions of shipments coming into the U.S. make it difficult to enforce compliance, GAO acknowledged.
Starting in July, the commission will require companies sending children’s food and other children’s products to the United States to electronically submit reports from private and foreign government labs, but it is unclear how those reports will be verified.
“The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) may take additional steps to assess the risks posed by laboratories it authorizes to perform testing,” according to the GAO report.
CPSC officials say electronic submissions can help address issues such as delays in completing inspections when importers lack documentation of laboratory tests. However, GAO’s review found that CPSC has not developed an oversight plan to ensure that importers submit timely and accurate data. According to GAO, developing such a plan will help CPSC achieve its intended goals, including making targeting more effective and investigations more efficient through electronic submissions.
Additionally, GAO found that although CPSC has a review process in place to ensure that third-party laboratories that test children’s products meet accreditation and other requirements, it does not proactively analyze data from all types of laboratories to assess potential risks, such as inaccurate testing or misreported results.
“CPSC recently began analyzing violation data for laboratories owned by manufacturers, but not independent or government laboratories, to better evaluate safeguards against undue influence. By making better use of violation data for these laboratories, CPSC may be better positioned to identify and address potential problems associated with all types of laboratories, which may help prevent violating products from entering the market,” the GAO report said.
“CPSC has reviewed and updated some of the testing requirements for children’s products, but has not updated the requirements for lead. Under the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008, CPSC is required to review lead requirements at least every five years, but has not done so.
“CPSC also does not have written procedures for how staff should monitor changes related to toxic substances in children’s products. By documenting the process for reviewing lead requirements and maintaining up-to-date information on toxic substances, CPSC can help strengthen standards and ensure that opportunities to protect children from harm are not missed.”
GAO made four specific recommendations to the CPSC to ensure that imported children’s food and other children’s products do not exceed lead limits. CPSC agreed with the recommendations and said it would implement them.
Recommendations include:
- Develop a plan to monitor compliance with electronic filing requirements.
- Establish a process to use breach data to assess risks associated with independent and government laboratories.
- Review lead requirements and document a process for completing lead reviews every five years. and
- Document processes to stay current on changes related to phthalates and other toxic substances.
