Ethics for toy industry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Ethics for toy industry - Essay Example wever, attractive and large though the business is, there are certain concerns associated with the safety standards used in the manufacture of toys and the health implications for their children. There is added concern for this as today the toys’ manufacturing units are located in far off offshore places with varying manufacturing standards (Becker, 2008). These concerns are based on several researches that have found toxic and harmful substances in popular toys. More recently, an environmental research group has found that in a sample of 15,000 toys taken from various toy stores across the US, 1 in 3 contained large amounts of lead, flame retardants and arsenic (Clifford, 2008). These toys were manufactured in the US, China and other parts of the world and freely available in the US, a fact that indicates that either there is lack of adequate legislation or that there is inadequate monitoring of the standards. There may be a lack of legislation that targets specific harmful s ubstances due to inadequate research or due to low public awareness about the harmful impacts of certain substances. For example, it is only recently that research and public opinion against the use of phthalates in toys has led to the development of laws covering this chemical. However, even in the case that there are not adequate legislation or enough public awareness, the continued use of substances like phthalates and lead cannot be justified by the toy manufacturers on an ethical ground.