Beloved Haba Toys: Made in China (can you hear my heart breaking?)

You'll find many posts and websites claiming Haba toys as a safe, happy and green toymaker, with great toys NOT made in china. We've got many toys made by them and we all adore them. My daughters have chewed them, and I've happily thought: so what! They are non-toxic, made in the oh-so-more progressive European Union, so all is well.

So when my intrepid mom noticed a comment on Amazon, stating that her new Haba toy for her child came with a made in China label, I gasped. Come on, Haba toys, too?

Her comments read: German Toy Made in CHINA?, June 4, 2007
By Kyra_Athena "Kyra_Athena" (Georgia USA) - See all my reviews

"I specifically sought out a European toy which marketed itself as quality, safe, and German-made. I simply do not trust products made in China. The box came with English, French, and German descriptions. In tiny print on the box said "made in China". That was right under the part about being designed in Germany. I will never purchase another Haba toy. These used to be made in Germany. There are plenty of reasons not to buy from China aside from the lead and safety issues found in many of the toys made there. The unique selling feature of this product was that it was made in Germany. Other than that, it is just a set of wooden blocks and was not worth the price."

That is exactly I feel, and I would be just as surprised to find that label on a Haba toy. Horrified, even. As I am now.

The folks at Oompa toys, who are very thoughtful and transparent about where the manufacturers of the toys they sell are made, has this to say about trusted European toy makers opening up shop in China (as Haba recently must have, or this small detail just escaped most green bloggers and writers). They have a good point-- but simply, I don't trust any toys made in China.

They are right on about Melissa and Doug toys, too. The paint chips, and I know now not to trust their products, either. Many have been found to contain lead, cadmium and other toxins. Take the time to look at the toys listed at Healthytoys.org to see if your Melissa and Doug toys are safe.


Then I found this over at Maukilo, about Haba toys made in China.

"With the exception of wooden puzzles and the architectural master builder block sets, the wooden toys are all produced in HABA's own factories in Bad Rodach, Germany. Water-based, non toxic stains are used to create colors; no lead paints at HABA. Fabric toys and some plastic items are manufactured for HABA by a few select suppliers that have been certified in accordance with the ICTI Code of Business Practices (www.toy-icti.org). As a matter of fact, every HABA toy complies with the EN 71 European Standard for Toy Safety, the ASTM F963 Standard Consumer Safety Specification in the USA, the EU Directive 76/769EEC on azo-dyes and finally the Chemicals Prohibition Ordinance. That means all of their toys, even those that are produced in China, meet safety standards which are, in some cases, even much stricter than thosein the United States."

From the looks of it, only "some" of their toys are made in China. But I found more than the above cited quote mentioned. Like these dolls, made in China, by Haba. In a search at healthytoys.org, I found bath toys made in China (and these had high levels of chlorine, for a medium safety warning), and a pencil, made in China with a HIGH LEAD LEVEL! Haba toys and lead! Unbelievable.

Here is Haba's statement about toy safety. They, like many other major toymakers, want to assure consumers that the production sites they use in China are held to the same standards as the ones in Germany, and that they are inspected regularly (We've heard this before--). So why is it, Haba, that the toys made in Germany came up safe at healthytoys.org, and only the ones made in China have medium or high risk?

I was surprised and saddened to see that this maker of beautiful, creative and mostly affordable toys is producing toys made in China. I will think twice about buying any Haba toy again, especially now that I know about that lead pencil! How many children do you know who chew on pencils? I know plenty, and I am just one teacher.

What do you think about this, readers? Do you have Haba toys at home?