A blog about news and politics by Steve Janke

June 29, 2007

Suspect tires sold by the container-full in Canada

Even as an official recall of tires made by the Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Company is about to begin in the United States, here in Canada we are learning that potentially a large quantity of these suspect tires have been distributed across Canada. There are no plans for a recall, and the importer insists that the tires are "fine".

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Posted by: Steve Janke at 08:39 AM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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1 Looks like pet food and other foodstuffs was just the beginning, now it's tires. If they can't get us with poisonous foodstuffs they'll kill a few on the roads. Now they've discovered some types of fish, shrimp and eel, from that filthy place are contaminated, what's next? What's it going to take to stop dealing with China? It may cost us more but what's our health and safety worth? Wonder what Mo Strong and his cohorts have to say about this?

Posted by: Libby at June 29, 2007 09:45 AM (xxeWF)

2 Well done Steve, I unfortunately had to leave for work before the piece played on Canada AM. (Don't laugh at me, my wife had it on.) And it's very interesting that I was discussing the quality of products from China with my boss the day you first brought the tire issue up. He came to work and asked me where I got my news, because he had just heard about this tire recall today. Hopefully another reader for you Angry.

Posted by: mecheng at June 29, 2007 09:50 AM (qFcf9)

3 One lone blogger exposing the all the dangers and hazards in exports from China and the MSM are picking up your stories for broadcast. They ought to be paying you for this.

Posted by: muttsrus at June 29, 2007 12:36 PM (JCh6t)

4 Many Canadians are too busy applying for jobs in the government, or angling to get contracts as fake native government suppliers, or applying for HRDC grants to do fake jobs in fake industries, to care where their tires come from. And the Canadians who are supposed to support all those government parasites in the lifestyle to which they wish to become accustomed are working way too hard for way too little after-tax salary, which is losing its value at way too fast a rate, for them to have any time, energy or money left to buy high-quality tires from responsible, profitable, domestic suppliers. Or God forbid to build, invest in, or work in a profitable and responsible domestic tire manufacting operation. And it gets worse. Your fake conservative government is determined to crank the up price of fuel, food and other vital goods way higher with "green" tax scams designed to squeeze votes out of urban poofs and soccer moms (and enrich their friends), leaving us with significantly less money to buy high quality tires (or high quality toothpaste). So in the future we're going to be buying a lot more cheap, shoddy goods from dodgy foreign suppliers. We have no other choice.

Posted by: at July 02, 2007 04:09 PM (a0Sy/)

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June 27, 2007

Tire recall in the US will begin on Monday

The American importer of allegedly defective Chinese-made tires will initiate an official recall in the United States on Monday. The company expects that they will be able to replace 10% of the tires before being forced to declare bankruptcy. In the mean time, we'll wait to see if Canadians are driving on the same tires, and whether corrective action will be taken.

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Posted by: Steve Janke at 07:33 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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June 26, 2007

Cheap Chinese tires are the subject of the latest recall

Two deaths are already being attributed to faulty Chinese tires. American authorities think over 450,000 faulty tires have been imported and might be on the road right now. Meanwhile, I had no problem finding a Canadian distributor of the suspect brands.

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Posted by: Steve Janke at 11:39 AM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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1 Hmm... Firestone anyone??? and as far as I recall that was like one and a half million tires and those were all manufactured in North America... fact is a massive %age of goods are now manufactured in China, there's bound to be recalls and issues.. it was the same with Japanese goods in the 50's and US goods before that... and you can't tell me that North American Manufactures havn't in the past put public safety at risk to save a buck.... way I see it nothing has changes... you tend to get what you pay for and buyer beware.

Posted by: Sierra at June 26, 2007 12:08 PM (CHE53)

2 Sierra...Domestic manufacturers are subject to accountability. China is laughing at us!

Posted by: ZiLLa at June 26, 2007 01:16 PM (Y3PLl)

3 Sierra: "[the] way I see it nothing has changes[d]." Well sadly the difference is: 1. Harder to tell where product is being manufactured 2. What or Which brand to avoid 3. Who's at fault or will admit fault I hope to God lawsuits abound and the pendilum swings back to buying NA goods, and hopefully not at gouging prices. You are correct however, NA manufactures have in the past put our safety at risk, but we have a recourse - the law and courts. China on the other hand, is out of touch. Then again, like Japanese cars back then maybe China has to go through a shakeup and/or loose sales. Difference again being, you KNEW back in 50's heck, even the 80's, you knew what was a JAP car and what was NA car. Now, half of any car has parts made in Mexico, China, Philippines, India, and Lord knows where else, so you can't avoid the danger.

Posted by: tomax7 at June 26, 2007 02:13 PM (jHhd0)

4 10% of all tires sold in NAmerica are made in China ... according to the article posted. This means that everybody is at some risk should an SUV with these defective tires go out of control and smack into you .... Chinese will lie, cheat and steal ... and think nothing of it unless caught ... it's their way of life ... believe it ..!!!

Posted by: Bill at June 27, 2007 12:07 AM (vBxsy)

5 * China responds to recalls of poisonous and counterfeit products, not with shame and apologies... but with a counter-attack. *

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June 22, 2007

Is the Colgate South Africa website a fake?

A reporter for the Brooklyn Daily Eagle wonders if the Colgate website listed on the counterfeit toothpaste boxes is itself legitimate. It might not be a great website, but the registration information seems legitimate. And I can't see how the aliasing could have been faked.

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June 21, 2007

Official statement from Health Canada with regards to the toothpaste scare

Health Canada has released an expanded statement with regards to toothpaste safety in this country. It is interesting. For one thing, Chinese toothpaste is out!

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June 20, 2007

Some preliminary results on the toothpaste

Health Canada has stated that the counterfeit Colgate toothpaste found in Canada is not the same as the product found in the United States. Health Canada has not said how it is different, though. While we wait, I can describe one interesting detail in the toothpaste in my possession that might explain just what is going on here.

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Posted by: Steve Janke at 01:45 PM | Comments (9) | Add Comment
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Counterfeit toothpaste imported by an electronics trader?

It looks like FHT Enterprises, the company that allegedly imported to the counterfeit toothpaste that is now the centre of a Health Canada probe, specializes in importing cables and DVDs and video games.

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June 19, 2007

Counterfeit Colgate toothpaste story starts rolling

First the Globe and Mail, then several radio interviews, and now two TV spots for CTV and CBC (Radio Canada). I suppose it's fair to say that the story of the counterfeit Colgate toothpaste I bought in Guelph has been noticed.

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Posted by: Steve Janke at 09:47 AM | Comments (10) | Add Comment
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1 I have a serious time believing that only 1440 tubes of this stuff came to Canada. What are the odds that a blogger who has been closely following the tainted Chinese product story, would walk into a random dollar store and just happen to get one of these tubes? Good job Steve.

Posted by: mecheng at June 19, 2007 09:58 AM (qFcf9)

2 Hmmm ... I guess the MSM took some time out from dumping on the Conservatives to actually report something of significance ... albeit several weeks after the fact.

Posted by: Brian at June 19, 2007 11:59 AM (TTZLL)

3 Saw you on CFTO News this evening. Hit the Big Time. Good job!

Posted by: john at June 19, 2007 06:02 PM (/I/Y7)

4 * Steve, there's more... "Just in the last month, a ghoulish fake eyeball toy made in China was recalled after it was found to be filled with kerosene." *

Posted by: neo at June 19, 2007 07:03 PM (V+jgs)

5 Good work, Steve! Thanks for not being a wimp and for being a genuine investigative reporter, a thing of the past, it seems, when it comes to our lib-left I'm-waiting-for-a-story-to-land-in-my-lap media sloths. Yesterday, I saw a huge bin of CREST toothpaste in a discount food store where I live. I was in a rush, so didn't look closely, but am going to go back today to see what's up. 'Walked right by a bin of deeply discounted cans of mandarin oranges, after I read the price card which said "Product of China." I think you've just uncovered the tiniest tip of the iceberg, Steve. So, there's no going back and Health Canada had better get going. Sloths and wimp everywhere, it seems. The Canadian Disease.

Posted by: 'been around the block at June 20, 2007 06:28 AM (+7B3R)

6 How silly of us to believe and expect all products our government allows into this country for our use are pure and safe! They're so damned stupid when it comes to life-saving drugs approved in the US. They refuse to allow them in without lengthy testing of their own. Total idiocy. All this at the same time they allow dangerous products from China, haven for the Loopy Left like Mo Strong and friends. The Conservative government has had enough time to look into our trade with Commie China. Trust them at our peril. Time to do a clean sweep. We do not need foodstuffs or personal products from that junk hole. It's quite serious, some pets were sickened and some died from bad products in pet food from that place. Do some humans have to die before we get action? Wonder if Chretien and Martin and Mo are using any of the products from their favorite place to do business?

Posted by: Libby at June 20, 2007 07:26 AM (10lMH)

7 Foxnews is onto the story now: hhttp://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,284794,00.html

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June 18, 2007

Toothpaste scare spreads

The fake Colgate toothpaste has turned up in Ontario and Florida and Kentucky.

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Posted by: Steve Janke at 03:25 PM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
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June 17, 2007

This theory suggests Colgate made the toothpaste declared to be counterfeit

I don't necessarily buy into this theory, but it does explain why the counterfeit toothpaste is in tubes that look completely correct, but why the cardboard outer packaging is littered with errors.

If this theory is true, however, it strongly suggests that the Colgate toothpaste tube I have contains diethylene glycol. It also suggests that it did not start out as a counterfeit.

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Posted by: Steve Janke at 05:57 AM | Comments (22) | Add Comment
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1 Now this explanation makes the most sense. You would think that if China or any other country used the Colgate name etc. they would be sued to death by Colgate for using their name and signage. Since that hasn't happened I think this is probably the most accurate explanation.

Posted by: George at June 17, 2007 06:07 AM (1OLRG)

2 Proctor & Gamble don't even admit they manufacture their Crest toothpaste ... only distribute it as indicated on the tubes. Colgate and P&G are trusted names, and if they don't know what is in their products made and imported from China, they deserve to be prosecuted to the hilt. I would love to see a monsterous class action law suit launched in the USA that would financially cripple these crooks and even jail some of their criminal executives.

Posted by: Thomas at June 17, 2007 12:30 PM (HIOMO)

3 All this stuff is very troubling. Makes you think it is just the tip of the iceberg. The latest recall from China is the Thomas the Train Set, an extremely popular toy with very young children and toddlers. Apparently the paint contains lead and children put everything in their mouths at this age. Almost all toys are made in China now. In fact ,almost everything is made in China now and I for one have become very selective and try to buy Canadian or USA goods.

Posted by: muttsrus at June 17, 2007 02:04 PM (YY0fO)

4 ...just came from the Loonie (Dollar) Store here in Calgary, after church and don't see any Colgate on the shelves, or Scope mouthwash come to think of it. There was some on the shelves last month when I was there looking for cheap birthday cards. I remember thinking "oh, should buy my stuff here as it is cheaper than at Shoppers".

Posted by: tomax7 at June 17, 2007 04:03 PM (jHhd0)

5 didn't see.

Posted by: tomax7 at June 17, 2007 04:07 PM (jHhd0)

6 Well, for now let's not buy Colgate or Crest toothpaste until they can assure us of a safe product. Better yet, assure us they will not use raw materials from China to make the products. Anything that goes into our mouths should NOT come from that place, they can't be trusted, period. Arm and Hammer have great products which I use, now I'm off to check them out for untoward practices.

Posted by: Libby at June 17, 2007 04:18 PM (FUy6A)

7 Where do you suspect lots of the apple-concentrate comes from that is turned into apple juice here in Canada simply by adding water and is thus 'made in Canada'?

Posted by: Rich at June 17, 2007 08:17 PM (PGEsg)

8 Where do you suspect lots of the apple-concentrate comes from that is turned into apple juice here in Canada simply by adding water and is thus 'made in Canada'?

Posted by: Rich at June 17, 2007 08:17 PM (PGEsg)

9 ...that is so true Rich, most of our Apple Juice concentrates are from China. Now that is scary because practically every fruit juice, and I can't remember who I was talking to, (Nestle guy) tells me that apple juice is the best to carry flavour, or in other words, it doesn't overpower the other flavours. Now I'm sure if SunRipe juices from the Okanagan are actually from there. Sad eh.

Posted by: tomax7 at June 17, 2007 09:40 PM (jHhd0)

10 Mebbe a short list is needed for what really IS made in Canada?

Posted by: Rich at June 18, 2007 09:52 AM (PGEsg)

11 Until recently I beleived BC hothouse brand tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers were grown right here in British Columbia's Frazer Valley (Products use to be advertised as such). I have since been informed by a friend in the vegetable wholesale business that they are actually grown in Mexico. BC Hothouse brand was purchased by an American conglomerant years ago and all of their produce comes from Mexico...which I tend to avoid due to unrestricted pesticide use. Won't buy their products anymore!

Posted by: T.S at June 18, 2007 11:11 AM (mTVnl)

12 I want to see a lawsuit against Thomas for bringing up 'Proctor & Gamble'-- P&G doesn't make Colgate. And P&G has no problems whatsoever with letting people know it makes Crest 'cause I worked at P&G right here in Ontario making the stuff. So if Colgate is tainted, then it's tainted and lets work on making sure our fellow citizens aren't harmed by tainted products. Spewing out ignorant and misleading information, Thomas, is a quick trip to causing hysteria in the public. Hell, you already got Libby not buying Crest, even though Steve's 'investigation' was only regarding Colgate--and only Colgate manufactured in China printed with improper labels that may not be even manufactured by Colgate-Palmolive in the first place (that's still under investigation as Steve even states himself). And you wonder why Canadians have a tough time believing anything the right states as facts. If you want to help the public, Thomas--as Steve is trying to do in this particular instance--educate them--don't mislead them.

Posted by: Sparky at June 19, 2007 12:34 PM (Kks7B)

13 Spaky...maybe you can enlighten me as to why all my Crest toothpaste tubes say "distributed by Protor and Gamble" and not "made in xyz"?

Posted by: tomax7 at June 19, 2007 10:41 PM (jHhd0)

14 Tomax7, Maybe you can enlighten me as to what I did for P&G when I was loading empty Crest toothpaste containers onto a machine that filled them with Crest toothpaste? Yes it was a while ago and maybe things have changed. That said, P&G owns Crest toothpaste. And Crest toothpaste isn't Colgate toothpaste. Furthermore, P&G doesn't make Colgate--Colgate-Palmolive does. I'll be the first to hold P&G's feet to the fire if their products are known to be tainted. You let me know when that time comes and I'll be right beside you, demanding justice. However, that time isn't now--stick to the facts and stop trying to obfuscate the issue. The facts are that people have found toothpaste on the shelves in Canada that may be detrimental to our health. These containers are labeled 'Colgate'--whether they were in fact produced by Colgate-Palmolive is not known at this time, but that'll hopefully come clear with investigation. The immediate concern is to educate the public to look for these tainted Colgate toothpaste containers and to not use them. Bringing in other types of toothpaste--even 'good' Colgate, only adds to confusion and doesn't help. And then to go on about 'distributed by...'? Yeah, glad you got the best interests of your fellow citizens at the top of your agenda there. I'm applauding Steve for bringing this issue to light. I'm also happily surprised that he sussed out the facts and tried to get all the pertainant information to all of us. He didn't go all non-specific regarding what products were tainted and cause unnecessary consternation in the public. Unlike some of the replies here--attributing Crest and P&G to this 'bad toothpaste' issue. And when you're called on it, you don't acknowledge the error--you try to obfuscate the point.

Posted by: Sparky at June 20, 2007 07:55 AM (Kks7B)

15 Sparky: "Yes it was a while ago and maybe things have changed." ...I think you just enlightened yourself. ---------------------- ...and I'll call you on your error. I didn't mention Colgate was made by P&G. Maybe first acknowledge your reading skills before getting all huffy. P&G makes Scope, and Scope was on the shelves of the Dollar store also, but I didn`t look at it closely as they are no longer in the store I visited.

Posted by: tomax7 at June 20, 2007 10:00 AM (jHhd0)

16 Sparky: "And when you're called on it, you don't acknowledge the error--you try to obfuscate the point." No acknowledgment yet of your misquote error?

Posted by: tomax7 at June 21, 2007 11:03 AM (jHhd0)

17 I profusely apologize for the delay, tomax--I didn't check this blog entry every few moments to see if you posted a reply. First ackowledge your reading skills, tomax--at no point did I state that you--tomax--said Colgate was made by P&G. However, there have been a few posts here that brought P&G and Crest into the picture when Steve's investigation focused *solely* and *exclusively* on tainted Colgate, and that's what my responses addressed. If anyone needs a refresher on reading skills, go speak with the other commenters. Furthermore, you just added to the obfuscation by bringing up Scope. Brilliant! That's showing me! Add to the confusion! I tried to clarify the issue--using the very same style and terminology as Thomas--by stating that the issue is with tainted Colgate and not with the other things mentioned by Thomas. Furthermore, when you--tomax--went yipping about my response, I--a person not particularly appreciating Steves political views--stated that he did good for his fellow Canadians but the commenters should try to stick to the facts. Not so much, really. Discernment's no where to be found. I got it--you don't want anything cleared up--you're obviously happy with living with the obfuscations--you even add to it and take on this 'air of superiority' when someone dares points it out. Tomax--you go right ahead and stay in this little confused BT world. As for me, I'm going to go read those that strive for truth and want what's best for *all* Canadians--not just the ones who lean to the right.

Posted by: Sparky at June 21, 2007 01:01 PM (Kks7B)

18 Not to belabor the point, tomax--but-- It's been a day, tomax, and what--no acknowledgement? Yeah, that pretty much sums it up for your smug superiorty. Grow up and start seeking truth instead of talking points.

Posted by: Sparky at June 22, 2007 09:43 AM (Kks7B)

19 ...whatever. Peace man.

Posted by: tomax7 at June 23, 2007 01:48 AM (jHhd0)

20 Whatever? And that's suppose to help? That's suppose to clarify? That's suppose to bring understanding between people who have differing opinions? Thus proving once again that you really aren't worth listening to or debating with. Whatever. Brilliant! I'll try that when someone gets sick from tainted Colgate--"Hey! That guy got sick!" Eh, whatever--it's the tomax thing to do. It kinda absolves me from any responsibility to do what's right and just for my fellow citizen, doesn't it? Whatever... But as you say--Peace man.

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June 16, 2007

Colgate leaps into action -- but secretly

Within a day of my call to Colgate Canada about the tube of toothpaste I picked up at the local dollar store, all the tubes have disappeared.

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Posted by: Steve Janke at 05:51 PM | Comments (12) | Add Comment
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1 Good for you. You may have saved some lives. But, as you say....Colgate needs to do more. I haven't checked the shelves where I am, but I will. If a company puts human welfare before revenue, they get my respect big-time.

Posted by: anonymous at June 16, 2007 07:37 PM (CvPqC)

2 * Another wonderful product from The People's Republic of "I don't give a shit". *

Posted by: neo at June 16, 2007 08:45 PM (g8YBp)

3 Notice, Canuckians, that this problem was detected by independent, non-government agents, and that once the problem was identified it was quickly and effectively fixed by independent, non-government agents, namely the private enterprises whose reputations, profits and livelihoods would be endangered by selling shoddy, dangerous or fraudulent goods. Another slam-dunk argument for not imitating the Chinese by expanding your Canadian government even more, by giving more money and more power to the very same useless governmental parasites who were supposed to protect us (they claimed) from dangerous goods. To fight foreign commies with domestic communist policies would ultimately expose Canadians to far more dangerous goods by stifling businesses and taxpayers more and more, which would leave people with less and less money in their pockets and fewer and fewer legitimate places to spend it, thus driving them to purchase more and more goods in grey markets and black markets.

Posted by: at June 16, 2007 08:57 PM (a0Sy/)

4 You may have saved some lives. Oh, I doubt that. We don't even know if the toothpaste was tainted. Anyone in or around Kitchener-Waterloo willing to run a GC or GLC on a sample?

Posted by: Steve Janke at June 16, 2007 09:19 PM (yCh9n)

5 Oh, I doubt that. We don't even know if the toothpaste was tainted. Anyone in or around Kitchener-Waterloo willing to run a GC or GLC on a sample? ....that's why I used the word "may". :-) Any action anyone takes that is essentially good has to have good consequences somewhere, even if we don't know what they are. That's just a personal philosophy I have.

Posted by: anonymous at June 16, 2007 10:24 PM (CvPqC)

6 We've heard precious little from Colgate Canada or from Health Canada, yet Colgate seems to be taking similar actions here. As I have said before where are the overpaid idiots in health Canada who we pay to find these thing. Reminds me of when Health Canada and Quebec health people where saying the new desease in Asia was nothing to worry about. That was SARS and people in Asia were dyeing. Is it any surprise that Canada was the only Western country to have deaths from SARS.

Posted by: at June 16, 2007 11:39 PM (Pl6rj)

7 Looking at my tube of Crest toothpaste I notice the following: Distr. by/par PROCTER & GAMBLE INC., TORONTO, ONTARIO M5W 1C5 Questions? 1 800 668 0152 P&G don't say they manufactured the toothpaste, only distributed it. That worries me. Who made the stuff and what control and inspection was performed on the Crest ??? Since you have the hammer now Steve, perhaps you could call P&G and find out what they are doing with Crest toothpaste.

Posted by: Thomas at June 16, 2007 11:50 PM (pOEwQ)

8 ...went down to the local Loonie store and bought all the Colgate tubes to use them in my radiator. I tell ya it sure did plug up any dang leaks and the car is running cooler, and has a fresh, new, clean, mint aroma when driving down the road. Don't need dat 6 year old pine cone air fresher hanging from my rear view mirror nomore, just haveta crank up the ol' A/C... Cool! ;-)

Posted by: tomax7 at June 17, 2007 06:17 AM (jHhd0)

9 "Anyone in or around Kitchener-Waterloo willing to run a GC or GLC on a sample?" I wonder if Dr. Joe, chemistry maven, would be interested in doing some tests. The only thing is, he's not in your area. He's in Montreal. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_A._Schwarcz http://oss.mcgill.ca/schwarcz.php

Posted by: Gabby in QC at June 17, 2007 01:10 PM (CBHIo)

10 ...guess should have posted in the blogstream, did it on the next one. Went to Dollar store here in Calgary, and no Colgate on the shelves now. Same with Scope mouthwash, different companies, but noticeably missing from the shelves.

Posted by: tomax7 at June 17, 2007 09:46 PM (jHhd0)

11 Hey, Steve. You made the front page of the Globe!

Posted by: WW at June 19, 2007 11:05 AM (yzOzm)

12 Hey Steve, saw you on the telly today re the toothpaste thing.....good on you....

Posted by: argee at June 19, 2007 09:41 PM (jRO1X)

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June 15, 2007

Toothpaste purchased in Ontario is counterfeit

I just got off the phone with a very helpful customer service representative at Colgate Canada, and she confirms that this product is not theirs.

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Posted by: Steve Janke at 11:25 AM | Comments (11) | Add Comment
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1 Why are you buying toothpaste in a dollar store. You get what you pay for in those places.

Posted by: Pissedoff at June 15, 2007 12:22 PM (6ZFCr)

2 It's called investigative reporting, I believe. Steve wanted to see if this stuff was available here as well as in the U.S. Now if we could get paid reporters to do the same. Pat

Posted by: Pat at June 15, 2007 02:00 PM (j4tnX)

3 Pat, I bet the press is working this. They have longer lead times than blogs, but it shows in the quality of the finished product.

Posted by: Steve Janke at June 15, 2007 02:02 PM (eGtvb)

4 Never mind toothpaste - what about Thomas the Tank Engine toys made in China with leaded paint?

Posted by: Greg at June 15, 2007 04:44 PM (KsxrY)

5 Good point Greg. We banned the use of lead in the manufacture of paint years ago to prevent lead poisoning, especially prevalent among our children. Why are importers allowed to bring in products from China containing lead? Are these goods smuggled in? Where are the safeguards? Looks like there are none. As consumers we are left to protect ourselves.

Posted by: louise at June 15, 2007 06:42 PM (UnhKW)

6 I believe that Steve has shown (to the whole country) that almost anything) made in China is suspect. Message to Canadians; don't buy ANYTHING made in China! At least anything that's ingestible.

Posted by: Paul M at June 15, 2007 07:23 PM (n8Rvi)

7 As much as I am loathe to purchase Chinese procucts..it is impossible. Everything is either made in China or is composed of Chinese components.

Posted by: ZiLLa at June 15, 2007 08:44 PM (LB/Qt)

8 I believe our last toothpick manufacturer closed up shop in Canada some years back and now all our toothpicks come from China. Damn things are hazardous to your health as they easily break. We are going to be so screwed if it ever comes to war with them as almost all our electronics are now manufactured there.

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June 14, 2007

I just bought Colgate toothpaste imported from South Africa in a Canadian dollar store

Update #1: Colgate Canada says this isn't their product and wants to get their hands on the tube.

Update #2: It looks like Colgate Canada is quietly picking up the faux toothpaste.

Update #3: The story has been picked up by the main stream media and is spreading quickly across Canada.

Colgate insists that it does not import toothpaste into the United States from South Africa. Any such products are counterfeits, and might contain diethylene glycol, a component of antifreeze known to be toxic to humans.

So I have to ask myself, why is it that Colgate imports South African toothpaste into Canada? Or is the toothpaste I am holding in my hand also a counterfeit? And is it poisonous?

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Posted by: Steve Janke at 01:54 PM | Comments (27) | Add Comment
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1 "this box also has misspellings" ...maybe da toothpaste was mont to go to Jamaica mon...

Posted by: tomax7 at June 14, 2007 02:34 PM (jHhd0)

2 Wow. And people were laughing at you. I expect you'll be making a trip down to the local university to find someone willing to run a few tests? (You should change the title of the post to "I just bought Coigate toothpaste...")

Posted by: mecheng at June 14, 2007 03:00 PM (qFcf9)

3 Bring it back, don't use it. I'm increasingly suspicious of those bargain stores, especially items that have contact with your innards. I will no longer shop at those places, even for clothes. I'd rather pay more and have peace of mind.

Posted by: louise marion at June 14, 2007 03:03 PM (UnhKW)

4 I am also curious about test results, I assume you are getting it tested. I think I'll stop by my local dollar store tonight as well and see what they have.

Posted by: The Hammer of Thor at June 14, 2007 03:04 PM (wZrZs)

5 This is a problem, but not for the reason you're worried. Toothpaste from countries like South Africa have much higher doses of Fluoride, which is good for Africans, but not for us. We get decent, and safe, amounts of fluoride in our drinking water, and a bit in our toothpaste. In South Africa, they don't have fluoride in their water, so they put extra fluoride in their toothpaste. Fluoride in high enough amounts can be toxic (as anything in a high enough dose can be). For this reason alone, that toothpaste should be yanked from shelves. Reference: http://www.snop es.com/inboxer/household/toothpaste.asp (space in the URL added to get past comment filter)

Posted by: jonny_eh at June 14, 2007 03:07 PM (ZQ7AG)

6 Tested? I don't know where to begin. Anyway, no time. But I think some of the media are interested and I'm sure they would rush a test as part of their story, should they pick it up.

Posted by: Steve Janke at June 14, 2007 03:07 PM (eGtvb)

7 Thanks Johnny. I looked at toothpaste tubes at the local Shoppers Drug Mart, and they ones I checked we made in Canada or the United States, presumably with appropriate levels of fluoride. Now the labelling of this tube shows fluoride concentration identical to North American toothpaste, so if it was made for export, that would be expected. If it was made for export...by Colgate...hmmmm.

Posted by: Steve Janke at June 14, 2007 03:11 PM (eGtvb)

8 I wouldn't trust the ingredients on the box, since it's counterfeit. You can't even trust the logo! For all we know, it has no fluoride, too much fleuoride, or even cat feces.

Posted by: jonny_eh at June 14, 2007 03:26 PM (ZQ7AG)

9 Colgate-Palmolive had definitely been making toothpaste in South Africa for at least thirty years to my own personal knowledge and their SA corporate headquarters is indeed in Boksburg--it's a suburb of Johannesburg (near the airport). If the toothpaste was real it would be fine because Colgate-Palmolive has worldwide standards and South Africa has a reasonably good system of regulatory control, but I think that what you have may very well be of dubious origins. . . South Africans can spell as well as anyone else can in a primarily english-speaking country. In addition, the packaging of your tube does not appear to be printed to the standard I would expect. Colgate toothpaste is an 'upmarket' brand in SA and as such it's packaging should reflect that.

Posted by: Ben in Ontario at June 14, 2007 04:07 PM (Qhoti)

10 I'd be willing to bet that the toothpaste is indeed official Colgate toothpaste. What probably happened is that as you mentioned, they mispelled "Colgate" on the package. This mistake was obviously cauth after the fact. Instead of selling the product in South Afican chain stores they sold the product to a secondary wholeseller for pennies on the dollar. This kind of stuff happens all the time. This January Effem foods apparently did a run of the family bags of M&M's using the Christmas packaging (4 weeks after Christmas). This product ended up in dollars stores (being sold for...$1). The same delicious M&M's but in the wrong packaging. This isn't an issue of South Africa sending bad bad product to Canada, but about shipping it to "low end" stores. If you went to South African dollar stores I'd bet you'd find them there to. Of coarse this could still very well be counterfit product. If it was made in China I would'nt use it to clean the enamel on my toilet bowl, let alone my teeth.

Posted by: Paul M at June 14, 2007 05:02 PM (98R6e)

11 You might be right Paul, but with the detection of DEG in South African sourced Colgate toothpaste in the US, the Canadian government needs to make a speedy determination of what the true situation is.

Posted by: Steve Janke at June 14, 2007 05:17 PM (wgmWg)

12 I'd be tossing it in the garbage.

Posted by: joey j. at June 14, 2007 05:56 PM (q33ws)

13 I went to my local Rabba to buy lottery tickets today and they had that exact same toothpaste.

Posted by: ZiLLa at June 14, 2007 06:10 PM (H/eTY)

14 Did you notice the misspellings on the ones you saw, ZiLLa?

Posted by: Steve Janke at June 14, 2007 07:18 PM (wgmWg)

15 Colgate toothpaste from SA (and China too) is definitely available for import. http://tinyurl.com/36yx8w http://tinyurl.com/39fwh6 Or are these counterfeits? Have to say we won't be buying Colgate toothpaste at all and will be checking other brands twice. May go back to baking soda :-) Colgate Palmolive also produces Hills pet food some of which was recalled because of contaminated wheat gluten.

Posted by: WW at June 14, 2007 10:24 PM (yzOzm)

16 Interestingly enough, I purchased a tube of 'Coigate' last week and your column prompted me to check its place of manufacture: "Made in Mexico". No apparent misspellings on my tube and the box had already been thrown out :-( Purchased from R.C. SuperStore (subsid of Loblaws) Keep up the good work Steve,

Posted by: Phil at June 15, 2007 06:53 AM (xUjnI)

17 You should contact Colgate about this. If it is a couterfeit then they'll want to know and will probably issue an alert or something. If it isn't a counterfeit then they'll probably apologize for the spelling errors.

Posted by: Iron Oxide at June 15, 2007 08:24 AM (h3RCj)

18 Someone report this to some government official! The packaging is only in english! A travesty if ever there was one. Well at least that would get the product pulled dangerous or not... sad to say

Posted by: mungman at June 15, 2007 08:30 AM (w9ZkP)

19 Someone report this to some government official! The packaging is only in English! A travesty if ever there was one. Seriously, though, that's one of the hints that this product was not meant for Canada.

Posted by: Steve Janke at June 15, 2007 09:07 AM (eGtvb)

20 ...the wife just came home with a dozen of those smaller cone shaped stand up tubes. Most are made in USA and a couple from Ireland.

Posted by: tomax7 at June 15, 2007 10:25 AM (jHhd0)

21 The problem I have with the bilingual packaging is that we all pay extra for special packaging for our market. I recently bought some electronics and there was an extra layer of bilingual labeling and shrinkwrap over the US packaging and shrinkwrap. Aside from the waste of dollars in the labelling for a small market where are the environmentalists on this...

Posted by: mungman at June 15, 2007 10:25 AM (w9ZkP)

22 I'm really commenting about a law suit, I would like more information. I can't support you without knowing what the suit is for maybe you could email me the problem post, I would be very interested in knowing more of what this law suit is about. Does anyone have a link to this post in question?

Posted by: blanks at June 19, 2007 12:59 PM (frX7o)

23 Testing for DEG vs glycerol vs propylene glycol or other glycols is quite simple, would take about a drop of sample and 20 minutes. Talk to your local test lab about GC with silylation. They may do it for fun!

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Posted by: outlet at December 19, 2012 07:14 AM (CIPRa)

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Reports of contaminated counterfeit Colgate toothpaste

Over a week ago I warned people to be suspicious of all toothpaste. The recall by the FDA covered only Chinese-made products, but I found an interview with a Chinese official in which he insisted that Colgate toothpaste was made in China. Colgate had said that this was untrue.

So was I wrong to be concerned?

It looks like I was ahead of the news by a week. A report today that contaminated Colgate toothpaste is being hunted down by American authorities. But as it turns out, it is counterfeit toothpaste. Authorities haven't determined the point of origin yet. Any guesses?

more...

Posted by: Steve Janke at 09:52 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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June 05, 2007

Colgate toothpaste -- Made in Mexico or China?

Breaking: Ersatz Colgate toothpaste in the United States might contain DEG. And I just bought a suspicious tube of toothpaste in my local dollar store in Canada.

The latest outrage from China is the export of toothpaste using a poisonous component of antifreeze, diethylene glycol, as a thickener. The FDA has blocked all imports of Chinese-made toothpaste into the United States.

The FDA also recommended that consumers with tubes of Chinese-made toothpaste dispose of the products immediately.

I use Colgate toothpaste, and I checked the label. Made in Mexico. Sounds fine, except for the fact that in this interview, an extremely senior Chinese Communist Party official, Cheng Siwei, brags about how Colgate toothpaste used by Americans is made in China.

Curious. And disturbing.

more...

Posted by: Steve Janke at 12:25 PM | Comments (9) | Add Comment
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1 Gotta love that global marketing...why it just brings a 'fresh brushed' smile to one's face ! I'm quite sure that the practice of packaging ingredients from wherever and labelling the product as being made in an 'acceptable' country: thereby circumventing all manner of regulations is far more widespread than may be imagined. As usual, money doesn't talk...it swears and once again proves that there is no real accountability in modern day economics...nor scrupples! Good post Steve.

Posted by: Simon at June 05, 2007 02:03 PM (mfPQj)

2 My tube of Crest just says "Dist. by/par" Proctor&Gamble, Toronto, Canada. They do not say where it is made, although the ingredients list appears quite comprehensive.

Posted by: john at June 05, 2007 02:36 PM (/I/Y7)

3 I have said it from the beginning...Made in USA/Product of Canada does NOT describe the origion of the components of any product!

Posted by: ZiLLa at June 05, 2007 03:53 PM (3Gji2)

4 Show me someone who has to buy 0ff-brand toothpaste in dollar stores and I'll show you someone who is either living off government welfare, is chronically underployed due to government interference in the job market, or whose after-tax, after-inflation income leaves them scrambling to survive. That's what sux about big government - they claim they're taking all your money because they're making you safe, but all they do is make your life more dangerous. And did you think that the only commies you have to worry about are the ones that call themselves "communists"? US Government bans private beef testing. Err, technically that's fascism, because the government is conniving to protect certain favored big businesses. But basically it's the same scam as in China (and Canada).

Posted by: at June 05, 2007 09:01 PM (a0Sy/)

5 show me someone who buys off brand toothpaste I'll show you a cheapskate! my crest costs just over a couple bucks and lasts forever at 2 brushes (promise MOM!) a day. oh for the good old days when we worried about too much flouride.

Posted by: kelly at June 05, 2007 10:16 PM (YQ94M)

6 I called Proctor and Gamble regarding the Crest toothpaste and they told me it was made in the US. When I asked about their other products the CSR I was talked to said "I don't know about any of those" and hung up.

Posted by: Jim Wilkinson at June 06, 2007 11:52 AM (1N09Z)

7 kelly - "show me someone who buys off brand toothpaste I'll show you a cheapskate!" ...obviously kelly's never had kids or lived on low income wages. I'm so glad I don't eat from sky blue colour with yellow print boxes any more.

Posted by: tomax7 at June 09, 2007 08:46 AM (jHhd0)

8 * -- BEIJING -- In a new twist on a widening scandal, China admitted Monday that unscrupulous dealers had sold fake blood protein to dozens of hospitals and phar macies, threatening the lives of patients and reportedly killing at least one person. *

Posted by: neo at June 12, 2007 12:33 AM (+j2Nb)

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Posted by: outlet at December 19, 2012 02:36 PM (7KP5P)

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June 02, 2007

Deadly Chinese exports: "Countries around the world have been on the lookout"

When Chinese toothpaste was discovered to be thickened with radiator coolant, authorities around the globe went on alert. The FDA has now discovered this poisonous toothpaste in the USA.

more...

Posted by: Steve Janke at 02:40 PM | Comments (8) | Add Comment
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1 Love the visual!

Posted by: missing link at June 02, 2007 04:53 PM (RtK60)

2 ...has anyone in power checked these 'Loonie' Dollar stores? They sell everything from made in China and I see a few toothpastes and mouthwashes in there when looking for cheap birthday cards.

Posted by: tomax7 at June 02, 2007 10:44 PM (jHhd0)

3 Is this the same consumer quality the Chinese are exposed to or is this just a special export treat for capitalist hosebags only......although with China's government on a population and birth rate decline agenda it seems logical the communist overlords would quetly allow poisons into the human food chain in their country.....maybe they figured we could use the de-pop help as well?

Posted by: WL Mackenzie Redux at June 03, 2007 08:20 AM (INHn8)

4 The wealthy don't buy from dollar stores, so the money they make in dealing with china will out-weigh any minor inconviences such as a little poisoned toothpaste or petfood. Let the importing company take a hit, but in a very short time things are forgotten and the cycle starts over again. Capitalism at it's best!

Posted by: Dave at June 03, 2007 10:26 AM (nEzv9)

5 * Another thoughtful, considered response from the Peoples Republic of "I don't give a shit." *

Posted by: neo at June 03, 2007 11:34 AM (kOEtI)

6 The Chinese solution to the problem? Remove the offending poison from the ingredients list. I suspect the next step will be to remove the 'Made in China' logo. Arguably at 1%, one would have to 'eat' a lot of toothpaste before the DEG would be a problem. Keep it out of reach of small children and pets.

Posted by: at June 03, 2007 06:46 PM (604CD)

7 ...anon at 6:46pm. "...one would have to 'eat' a lot of toothpaste before the DEG would be a problem." I can't help thinking of the boiling frog analogy.

Posted by: tomax7 at June 03, 2007 11:43 PM (jHhd0)

8 ...under the, umm, "No Crap Sherlock" category: BEIJING Â— China will license no new Internet cafes this year while regulators carry out an industry-wide inspection, the government says, amid official concern that online material is harming young people. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,277652,00.html - the only "harm" the kids will find is there is a world of truth out there besides the Politico Party line...

Posted by: tomax7 at June 04, 2007 09:18 AM (jHhd0)

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May 26, 2007

Tetrodotoxin in Chinese monkfish

Mixing plastic component melamine in pet food.

Antifreeze diethylene glycol in cough syrop and toothpaste.

Deaths suffered by both animals and humans.

Imports from China have killed, and continue to kill.

Now Chinese monkfish is contaminated. And with one of the deadlist neurotoxins known to science. Tetradotoxin is best known as active poison in the deadly pufferfish.

more...

Posted by: Steve Janke at 11:22 AM | Comments (11) | Add Comment
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1 This might seem like a stupid question, but where are the Government food inspectors or whatever they are called, paid for by US and Canadian taxes? These are the people who we pay to stop these imports. These are the overpaid idiots who are allowing this.

Posted by: Pissedoff at May 26, 2007 11:43 AM (2xEN3)

2 Would you buy a car from China?

Posted by: Chazz at May 26, 2007 04:54 PM (4z8N5)

3 China is a FLICKING MESS ... and they don't give a sh!t about what happens after they ship something out and make a fast buck on it ... they are ferengi of the worst order ... and they have us by our Wal-Mart cajones ...!!!! They and the muslims don't deserve to be part of the first world because they have contempt for us and our democratic values.

Posted by: at May 26, 2007 05:41 PM (KPO74)

4 ...how does that old saying go? You get what you pay for.

Posted by: tomax7 at May 27, 2007 08:30 AM (jHhd0)

5 It's time to boycott any foodstuffs from China and give that regime the message they've chinked away all their credibility as a trusted trading partner. Importing Chinese wheat products is the ultimate stupidity. What's the big trade deal when your getting foods dangerous to human and animal health? Wonder what Mo Strong thinks on this subject? Wonder if he's had a few feeds of some of the dangerous products along with breathing their polluted air? That would be the same polluted air we are to send credits for under Kyoto. It's becoming clearer those who dreamed up the Kyoto scheme and those who signed it were bereft of all common sense. It certainly is puzzling why those in our thriving Western Democracies accept and trust inferior crap from such a regime as China.

Posted by: Libby at May 28, 2007 07:46 AM (Wedwd)

6 My neighbour had ice cream yesterday and instantly broke out in a rash. Wonder if it comes from China.

Posted by: DrWright at May 28, 2007 09:19 AM (tzmyN)

7 "It certainly is puzzling why those in our thriving Western Democracies accept and trust inferior crap from such a regime as China." Follow the money, Libby. Someone's making a lot of do-re-mi from these deals--probably in the Liberal Party, as most of these deals were made with China when they were in power. We know that Chretien, Martin, and Strong spend a lot of time in China these days. 'Probably working for nothing, you know, they're so altruistic.

Posted by: 'been around the block at May 28, 2007 04:19 PM (PWhxm)

8 Actually, this kind of stuff has been going on for a long time. In 1993, I bought my daughter, at a yard sale, one of those "Muffin Dolls," where the muffin part, turned upside down, becomes a skirt. She loved it, and three hours later broke out in the worst hives I've ever seen, all over her body. We have pictures of her, poor kid. It took me a day or so to isolate this toy, which I put in a plastic bag and stowed away in the basement, just in case it wasn't the culprit. It was, and I threw it out. But not before I wrote to Consumer Affairs with all of the details I could ascertain from the product. I don't think they ever got back to me. As I say. Follow the money. We've got a lot of millionaires and billionaires in Canada, I suspect, thanks to trade with China--and it looks like we're going to have a lot of sick people, too, or worse.

Posted by: 'been around the block at May 28, 2007 04:25 PM (PWhxm)

9 Interesting parallel with the Blue ringed octopus which is armed with the same poison. This tiny but deadly creature was used as the perfect murder weapon in Michael Crichton's book "State of Fear". It leaves little or no evidence of an entry wound, and is rare enough that most medical staff would not recognize it. It leads me doubt that recent occurences in Chinese products are accidental.

Posted by: Scott Merrithew at June 01, 2007 04:40 AM (CpWzQ)

10 The comparison to what happened when Canada discovered a few cases of BSE (mad cow disease) in dairy cattle not meant for human consumption, and where the risk of infectivity was virtually non-existent, is revealing. Why do we continue to treat China with kid gloves, when they violate so many norms of human rights, international trade and so on? They are not our friend. They are consumed by self-interest over all. I know, follow the money...

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May 22, 2007

Brush your teeth...and die! Chinese toothpaste is 5% antifreeze

Breaking: Ersatz Colgate toothpaste in the United States might contain DEG. And I just bought a suspicious tube of toothpaste in my local dollar store in Canada.

Brush your teeth...and die! Thanks to Chinese quality controls. On the other hand, the toothy grin on the skull-and-crossbones has never looked so bright and shiny.

more...

Posted by: Steve Janke at 12:19 PM | Comments (10) | Add Comment
Post contains 1038 words, total size 10 kb.

1 Thank you so much for staying on this topic. I avoid items from China as much as possible. After one of your previous articles, I checked my soy sauce and it was made in China and I threw it away (unused, thankfully). I just noticed that my daughter's eyeshadows are made in China. Do you happen to know anything about items such as that? It's time that other countries band together and refuse imports from China until they can prove their products are safe.

Posted by: Barbara in Wpg. at May 22, 2007 01:40 PM (J05dg)

2 I agree with Barbara, but the dilemma resides much deeper than labeled identity of product origion. The recalled pet foods, for instance, are labelled as Product of Canada or Made in USA. They dont identify the ingredient's origions. This is a problem!! Thanks You, Steve indeed for following this.

Posted by: ZiLLa at May 22, 2007 03:42 PM (OKRQt)

3 From the same article a tellinhg quote:- "Danyang City Success Household Chemical, however, said that while it did not export to Panama, it has used diethylene glycol in its toothpaste, and that the government does not have a clear regulation on how much CAN be added" (Capitals are mine) - Nor , I bet, does it have any regulation as to how much rat poison or strychnine CAN be added .

Posted by: Rich at May 22, 2007 03:58 PM (RW5HE)

4 I think your above label needs to be amended. Let's get the "food" dropped so that it says "Guaranteed free of products from China." At least starting with the "made in China" products is a start. But just because it's not made in China doesn't mean it doesn't have components/ingredients from China.

Posted by: Reid at May 22, 2007 04:49 PM (/5CAv)

5 Brush your teeth...and die! Well, OK, as long as you're not getting hysterically over the top or anything. That's a well-known technique to get people to accept greater and greater government control over their lives, and it would be kind of funny if you used your blog to advocate even greater trade and health socialism on Canadians than they have now ... in the name of fighting communism. DIT DIT DIT DAH DAH DIT DAH --- And now a breaking bulletin from the real world --- fluoridated toothpaste - the good ol' Canadian kind - is hazardous to your health if ingested --- DIT DAH DIT DIT DIT DAH Toothpaste is not intended to be swallowed. Some types of toothpaste may cause nausea or diarrhea if swallowed in excess quantity. Extended consumption while the teeth are forming can result in fluorosis. This is why young children should not use toothpaste except under close supervision. Prob'ly some of those damn Chi-coms been getting into our toothpaste factories.

Posted by: at May 22, 2007 07:10 PM (a0Sy/)

6 I thought it was a catchy headline. Grabs your attention.

Posted by: Steve Janke at May 22, 2007 08:22 PM (8EY+r)

7 Crest products over 45 years of use have never made me sick or killed anyone. A U. S corporation coming under a cloud such as this would immediately be beset and destroyed by the media followed by plaintiff's attorneys. The EU and Japan would ban their entire product base and probably similar products from other U. S. manufacturers, e. g., BSE-infected cattle. The MSM is not tough enough on China. Being of overseas origin should not provide a "by" from criticism or repercussion.

Posted by: iowavette at May 23, 2007 08:56 AM (0p4xh)

8 ...I often wonder when visiting the Loonie (Dollar) stores to buy simple birthday cards, I see all the "made in china" stuff in there and wonder if... I see lots of Crest and Colgate products there, along with Scope Mouthwash and so on. How can they sell so low? If any Federalies are reading this, please check those stores first and let me know.

Posted by: tomax7 at May 23, 2007 11:20 PM (jHhd0)

9 "Brush your teeth...and die!" Not really sure which is more the moonbat, bolshi fellow travelers, or crackpot Randians.

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May 18, 2007

Chinese culture of lies endangers their economy

The Chinese are terrified that the pet food scandal will cause their food exports to collapse in the face of angry Western consumers.

What they don't get is that China primarily exports lies. We ought to close the doors until that changes.

more...

Posted by: Steve Janke at 10:44 AM | Comments (23) | Add Comment
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1 Saving face ... that's what it's all about with the Chinese communist-capitalists. We can do no wrong because we Chinese are superior ... just look at our accomplishments ... our space program will soon send a Chinaman into space. Canadian businessmen who deal with the Chinese know that the Chinese will lie, cheat, steal to get the best of the deal and then break production commitments as they market the products on their own thus stealing it. But the lure of low wage slave labour is just too much to resist ... e.g. Wal-Mart, the biggest corporation in the world selling mostly Chinese goods. For some products, China is the sole source supplier in the world, so they got us by the balls !!! Even Canadians with links to the Liberal party are embedded in China, Powercorp-CITIC, CSL, Mo Strong-Chery cars, others.

Posted by: Observer at May 18, 2007 11:07 AM (0hlyp)

2 It is easier to point the finger at China than to clean up our own act. We howl about contaminated wheat but say nothing about aspertame for example, that is produced and used here. It has deadly affects and yet we say and hear nothing. If we can't clean up our own act why should China have to do what we won't do for ourselves? Goods imported from any other country are supposed to be checked by Health Canada and CFIA--so how did this get into Canada in the first place? It is we who fell down on the job. But then I suspect our watchdogs are also not willing to rock the boat. It may cost someone a lot of trade. And as we should know by now--that is more important than citizens.

Posted by: George at May 18, 2007 12:20 PM (Ck5Ow)

3 Yeah, trading with the Chinese could be dangerous to our health. When it come to foodstuffs it could kill us. The pet food scare is the tip of the iceberg. We now know it's also hit the human food chain through farm animal feed. We can make our own conscientious effort to dig in and refuse to buy anything from that place but it's all around us. Personally I have no mercy on the lying buggers, hope they lose big time. They can take Mo Strong and all the other Liberal toadies to that Commie regime along for the ride. Bottom line, we do not need to be importing ANY foodstuffs from that Country. Why reward a regime that starves it's peasant people and bolsters its Army?

Posted by: Libby at May 18, 2007 02:19 PM (gB+4H)

4 Alot of babies died from the bad baby formula. The babies appeared to be gaining weight but were not getting close to the nutrition they needed, effectively starving them to death. The poor parents couldn't tell and didn't notice the problem until it was too late. I am confident the Chinese themselves will take care of these problems eventually. There is plenty of unrest in China that we do not hear much about.

Posted by: Eric-Vancouver at May 18, 2007 02:51 PM (mbbdk)

5 It isn't simply a government problem in China; it's a mode of life in China, where you, the consumer and you, the producer, are engaged in a tug-of-war. The producer wants to produce goods as cheaply as possible and will cut costs and corners to do so. The consumer wants cheap goods and isn't knowledgeable enough to test for quality. There are few gov't regulations and again, the mode of life renders inspections doubtful. You are expected to bribe and pay off the inspectors; that is the way of life. Don't assume that this is confined to China. Remember, that construction in Quebec has followed the same mode for many years; those concrete bridges didn't fall without reason. What is required is a massive regulatory system in China, with officials who aren't open to bribery and severe penalties for the 'old mode of life' - which is to produce the goods as cheaply as possible. Not easy to do.

Posted by: ET at May 18, 2007 03:35 PM (PAeLx)

6 "We ought to close the doors until that changes." I absolutely agree. Let's go back to an INTERNAL economy. I travel far and wide to try to purchase Canadian stuff. When that fails..I search for US stuff...when that fails= I buy Chinese shit!

Posted by: ZiLLa at May 18, 2007 05:52 PM (a+cN8)

7 In order to prevent the further destruction of this once wonderful country: - reduce immigration or stop it all together - send back deadbeats - force minorities to pay own way - reduce dependence on imports - increase mutual self dependence within country via real citizenry

Posted by: real conservative at May 18, 2007 07:02 PM (EZLLA)

8 Thanks for this post, Steve. I'm getting rid of anything on my food shelves with Chinese on it. I know it won't cover everything but it's a start. ACT II popcorn (which many Video stores sell) has Chinese characters from top to bottom on their packaging: Good-bye. Hello Orville Redenbacher. (Please don't tell me that Orville is outsourced to China... ;-) I haven't drunk apple juice for ages; now that I know that 80% of the concentrate comes from China, I think I'll stick to cranberry juice. Since the SARS epidemic, I haven't eaten any food from a Chinese restaurant. I had no confidence in the Chinese OR Canadian officials and wondered, "What if someone in the kitchen has just come back from China or has been exposed to someone who has?" Too bad. I love Chinese food. Is there a Web site anywhere that lists the actual contents of foodstuffs from China? That would be very helpful. I believe in the power of one. I'm going to attempt to stop buying anything from China, if at all possible. If every ONE decided to do this, it might have an impact. (Bummer. I love visiting the Chinese stores on Spadina: but, no more.)

Posted by: 'been around the block at May 18, 2007 08:23 PM (CD5dR)

9 Thanks for this post, Steve. I'm getting rid of anything on my food shelves with Chinese on it. I know it won't cover everything but it's a start. ACT II popcorn (which many Video stores sell) has Chinese characters from top to bottom on their packaging: Good-bye. Hello Orville Redenbacher. (Please don't tell me that Orville is outsourced to China... ;-) I haven't drunk apple juice for ages; now that I know that 80% of the concentrate comes from China, I think I'll stick to cranberry juice. Since the SARS epidemic, I haven't eaten any food from a Chinese restaurant. I had no confidence in the Chinese OR Canadian officials and wondered, "What if someone in the kitchen has just come back from China or has been exposed to someone who has?" Too bad. I love Chinese food. Is there a Web site anywhere that lists the actual contents of foodstuffs from China? That would be very helpful. I believe in the power of one. I'm going to attempt to stop buying anything from China, if at all possible. If every ONE decided to do this, it might have an impact. (Bummer. I love visiting the Chinese stores on Spadina: but, no more.)

Posted by: 'been around the block at May 18, 2007 08:42 PM (CD5dR)

10 Thanks for this post, Steve. I'm getting rid of anything on my food shelves that might be from China. ACT II popcorn (which many Video stores sell) has Chinese characters from top to bottom on their packaging: Good-bye ACT II. Hello Orville Redenbacher. (Please don't tell me that Orville is outsourced to China... ;-) Now that I know that 80% of apple juice concentrate comes from China, I think I'll stick to cranberry juice. Since the SARS epidemic, I haven't eaten any food from a Chinese restaurant. I had no confidence in the Chinese OR Canadian officials and wondered, "What if someone in the kitchen has just come back from China or has been exposed to someone who has?" Is there a Web site anywhere that lists the actual contents of foodstuffs from China or the names of the companies that import food from China? That would be really helpful.

Posted by: 'been around the block at May 18, 2007 09:04 PM (CD5dR)

11 oh no! I kept getting the message that the Web page had expired. 'Had no idea my message had posted. In fact, when I looked at the comments, the last comment was from real conservative. Something weird is going on at the blogs I comment at. It's getting harder and harder to post. What's up, do you think?

Posted by: 'been around the block at May 18, 2007 09:09 PM (CD5dR)

12 What is required is a massive regulatory system in China, with officials who aren't open to bribery and severe penalties for the 'old mode of life' - which is to produce the goods as cheaply as possible. Not easy to do. "Those commies need more bureaucrats" is just about the funniest thing I've ever heard. China has the most massive regulatory system in the world. Those bureaucrats were pretty conscientious and incorruptible ... for the first couple of years. Now it's a mess. It's not even their fault. It's a communist thing. All bureaucracies are useless, and even when the individual pencil-pushers are not personally corrupt, the very nature of the system in which they work is corrupt. They work under perverse incentives. If bureaucrats actually solved the problems that were used as an excuse for giving them their cushy jobs, and cleaned up the food supply, defined once and for all a good public school curriculum, figured out how to make government hospitals responsive to their local population, then they'd be out of a job. Bureaucrats MUST screw things up, so that they can claim that the market failed, so they can increase their budget and get more of their buddies on the payroll. Thanks to our government school system, everyone seems to think that bureaucrats made Canada into a rich, safe country. But it's the opposite. It was the relative lack of taxes, regulations, subsidies and bureaucratic interference in the market which kept private property in the hands of the owners, which motivated the owners to work hard to produce the best possible product, to maintain the highest possible standards of quality, and to get and keep a solid reputation in the marketplace. They did it so they could get rich and keep the profits, and because if they didn't work hard and produce good products and maintain a spotless reputation, their competitors would quickly trounce them in the marketplace. Ever wonder why Robin Hood flour, Kraft peanut butter and Allen's apple juice are in everyone's kitchen? Hint: it ain't because some government tools in white coats went all up and down their factories wiping everything with a white glove, while their colleagues who never saw the inside of a factory sat in an office writing 900-page books of regulations. http://www.mises.org/etexts/mises/bureaucracy.aspRead it and weep, all you amateur commissars.

Posted by: at May 18, 2007 09:17 PM (a0Sy/)

13 ...one can only hope this is the beginning of a public backlash against Chinese products. Like a pendulum, hopefully the mood is swinging back towards North American goods.

Posted by: tomax7 at May 19, 2007 12:31 AM (jHhd0)

14 ...then again, is North American goods and ethics any better? Love Canal for example. Remember Japanese goods were once considered crap. Made in J.A. Pan. So now who's has the best made stuff?

Posted by: tomax7 at May 19, 2007 12:33 AM (jHhd0)

15 Add toothpaste and cold medicine to the list. Today's NY times reports that in Panama anti-freeze has been found in toothpaste that is suspected to come from China and earlier this year anti-freeze ( Diethylene Glycol) was mixed into cold medicine after the manufacturer bought what it thought was -an was falsely labled as -glycerin from China.

Posted by: Nbob at May 19, 2007 04:24 AM (S5y60)

16 I feel like a cheap whore, simply because of the fact I HAVE to buy Chinese stuff. Anything made in QANNADDA is too expensive. For me.

Posted by: Feldwebel Wolfenstool at May 19, 2007 08:01 AM (GN3Xe)

17 Well, Felwebel W., try not to buy the food from China. Because, then, you may not only be "a cheap whore," you may be a dead cheap whore.

Posted by: 'been around the block at May 19, 2007 08:40 AM (eY6ld)

18 So if we ban imports from China does that mean Martin can't get ships built there? It's weird that all my life I hear there isn't enough food in the world then find we are importing from China whats wrong with this picture? Is it just me? tomax7 I will always pay more for north american goods because they aren't crap. I don't like toys that when you open them fall apart. Tools that are machined so badly the don't work on day 1. etc, etc, When did the Japanese ever put a man on the moon? In china they are trying to get into space.

Posted by: DrWright at May 19, 2007 09:42 AM (57epW)

19 ...did the Japs ever put a man on the moon? No, but if that is your gauge of technology advancement, then the US is still in the 60's. Back to NA goods...just bought a GFI plug for outside and had it tested by a journeyman electrician and found a problem with it. Was made in China. My fault, it was $3 cheaper and looked the same as the NA one. Got the NA, works fine. This after hearing stories of shoddy Chinese electronics. Scary thought, everything electrical from Computers to Ipods to wife new iMac is made in China. (Designed in California all over the box although - ha) Hopefully they have better control over construction. I wonder alud - would or could it be possible a lot of the cancer we see happening around us is from Chinese foods and items? Naw.

Posted by: tomax7 at May 19, 2007 10:20 AM (jHhd0)

20 Did you read the papers today where they reported that the Chinese remove organs for transplants from still living prisoners, etc. who are then left to die? In fact, it was reported, every westerner who goes to China is directly responsible for the life lost by a Chinese. I am with you: I don't need China and wouldn't miss it either.

Posted by: Werner Patels at May 19, 2007 06:13 PM (/V2m6)

21 A very good post, and rather thorough. Although changing our economy to remove dependence on China would be a little like trying to tell everybody in Canada to ride a bicycle; it isn't likely to happen (no Kyoto insinuation in this comparison).

Posted by: R. Alexander at May 19, 2007 09:02 PM (0Sdl6)

22 I suppose your deep experience in doing business in China gives you this enlightening perspective. I further suppose that you are desperately seeking the $200 per month jobs that China has "won" in becoming the factory for our consumer needs, and also, of course, the repository for our wastes. I am sure it would be a raise for you, but not for most. Finally, your call to ban all products from China speaks about the depth of your commitment to free markets and the triumph of market forces. Sound like you have the intellectual depth and clarity of your political masters! Carry on...

Posted by: get_real at May 21, 2007 10:06 AM (tos+u)

23 To the commenter above: I believe a portion of mutual understanding and maturity is required beyond what you have displayed. Naturally we who believe China has a harmful effect on both our economy and our lives do not, by illogical reasoning, feel content that workers make wages of despicable proportion. But China certainly is a nation with a pandemic economy, and if we are to innoculate ourselves from the effects, we must look at the alternatives availed to us. At a certain point one must ask the question of whether it really is more important to stamp out flashlights in China for 30 cents a unit if it means that we are endangered by trade with the nation. It takes more political courage to turn away a quick buck in trade with a nation discontent with merely murdering its own citizens, than it does to carry on as though nothing had happened, taking the risks that come with it. It also speaks volumes for our economy that many Canadian companies have reached a point where they couldn't compete with China were every Canadian to work for free. Such a disproportionate standard of living makes competition impossible, and where reasonable competition is limited, the free market fails. Where the free market fails, we enter into a realm of retail enslavement, forced to consume from one providor, as though we were the ones enslaved under communism, and not the Chinese.

Posted by: R. Alexander at May 21, 2007 10:32 PM (0Sdl6)

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May 06, 2007

Diethylene glycol is not a traditional Chinese cure for a cough

Yet more horror stories about Chinese exports killing hundreds, if not thousands. But this time we're talking about children being given antifreeze by parents who thought they were being given cough syrup. Why? Because this sort of antifreeze tastes sweet and is cheaper than glycerin. Too bad diethylene glycol is deadly.

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