Mattel Inc., world’s largest toy maker, announced a third major recall of Chinese-made toys month because of excessive amounts of lead paint.

The newest recall covers 675,000 Barbie accessories sold between October 2006 and August of this year. No Barbie dolls were included in the action.

The paints decorating Barbie dog and cat toys may contain impermissible levels of lead which can cause adverse health effects.

The recall also included 90,000 units of Mattel's GeoTrax locomotive line and about 8,900 Big Big World 6-in-1 Bongo Band toys, both from the company's Fisher-Price brand. The Big Big World products were sold nationwide from July through August of this year, while the GeoTrax toys were sold from September 2006 through August of this year.

Mattel said in a statement that the Barbie products affected by the recall were produced by Holder Plastic Company, a Mattel contract vendor, which subcontracted the painting of miniature toy pets and small furniture pieces to Dong Lian Fa and Yip Sing. Both companies used uncertified paint and are no longer producing toys for Mattel, the company said.

The recalled toys in the Barbie accessory line included a Barbie Dream Puppy House, which had lead paint on the dog; a Barbie Dream Kitty Condo playset, which had lead paint on the cat; and a Barbie table and chairs kitchen playset, which had lead paint on the dog and dinner plates.
Mattel added that its probe revealed that the subcontractors painted the affected toys between March 2007 and August 2007.

Robert Eckert, chairman and chief executive of El Segundo, Calif.-based Mattel, warned at a press conference last month that there may be more recalls of tainted toys as the company continues investigations into its Chinese factories that produce children’s toys.

Mattel is facing a possible legal action. Authorities are concerned that Mattel may not have notified customers as quickly as it should have in connection with the Aug. 14 recall.

Mattel's last recall, announced on Aug. 14, covered about 19 million toys worldwide. They included Chinese-made toys that either had excessive amounts of lead paint or had small magnets that could easily be swallowed by children.

On Aug. 1, Mattel's Fisher-Price division said it was recalling 1.5 million preschool toys featuring characters such as Dora the Explorer, Big Bird and Elmo because of lead paint. That action included 967,000 toys sold in the United States between May and August.

The news, along with other recent recalls of tainted Chinese toys from other toy makers, could also make parents even more nervous about shopping for toys this holiday season.

About 65 percent of the company's toys are made in China, and about 50 percent of Mattel's production there is produced in company-owned plants. With more than 80 percent of toys sold worldwide made in China, many parents are likely to avoid buying Chinese-made toys this coming holiday season. 

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