Pacific edition, Wednesday, July 25, 2007
SEOUL — AAFES officials say the 12 Toy Century products they continue to sell do not contain lead-based paint.
The Army and Air Force Exchange Service has recalled five other Toy Century products, sold under the AAFES in-store “Soldier Bear” brand.
In an e-mail Saturday, AAFES spokesman Judd Anstey said the toys “have either passed additional testing or do not have surface paint.”
After the May recall, Stars and Stripes reported that several of the toy sets had pieces that appeared to be similar to those recalled from Target in November 2006 and Toys “R” Us last March.
AAFES told Stripes in May that additional testing was unnecessary.
Four days after the story published, AAFES officials decided to “pull and test all Toy Century products that had surface paint,” Anstey confirmed in Saturday’s e-mail.
When AAFES received the test results on June 29, they discovered that four more toys contained hazardous levels of lead-based paint, and after coordinating with the Consumer Product Safety Commission, issued a July 18 recall.
Anstey also said the remaining stock of five other Toy Century products was destroyed because there were not enough products to test.
“Even though no hazard had been associated with these five styles, AAFES erred on the side of caution and removed these styles from its shelves,” Anstey said.
He added that customers with safety concerns can return any AAFES product for a full refund.
Anstey added that AAFES’ lawyers are reviewing the matter with Toy Century.
What’s OK
AAFES officials said these Toy Century products, sold under AAFES’ in-house “Soldier Bear” brand, are safe:
n Kustom Kruiser Changeover (red Hummer vehicle) n Military Tower Playset n Helicopter with figure n Heroes vehicle with Humvee and Helicopter n Air Land & Sea Playset n Heroes Playset (fire truck with two police vehicles) n Giant Combo Playset (three vehicle set with assorted fire and police vehicles) n Remote Control Dinosaur n Starletz Dream Mansion n Combo Playset n Take Apart Adventure Set n Center Command with figure
What’s notAAFES officials have recalled these toys because testing showed hazardous levels of lead-based paint:
n Heroes-Dino Mega Cruiser: Style #00047, UPC #4 98567 00047 4. n Dinosaur Adventure Set: Style #91068, UPC #6 98567 91068 1. n Adventure Set (Wild Animal & Dinosaur): Style #91074, UPC #6 98567 91074 2. n Heroes Vehicle Play Set (Military, Police & Fire Rescue): Style #85939, UPC #6 98567 85939 3. n Invincibles Transport Converters Toy Sets (Truck & Helicopter): Style #88931, UPC #6 98567 88931 4
