Customs officers at the Port of Memphis have intercepted a shipment of infant products, valued at $61,000, after it was discovered to contain items with high lead content and choking hazards. This seizure was the result of a collaborative effort between the U.S. Customs and Border Protection's Machinery Center of Excellence and Expertise (CEE) and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).
During a careful inspection in early July, items declared as luggage carts and furniture mountings turned out to be infant strollers, swings and, highchairs. The CPSC was then called in to verify the safety of these mislabeled products. According to an official statement by the CBP, "The combined efforts of the Machinery Center, the Port of Memphis, and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to identify and advance this shipment toward seizure serves as an illustrative example of effective enforcement through collaboration," said Director Juan J. Porras of the Machinery CEE.
Subsequent testing by CPSC revealed unacceptable levels of lead in various parts of the seized items, alongside other safety risks such as coin cell battery swallow hazards. As a result, on September 17, CPSC directed the CBP to seize and destroy all items in the shipment, totaling 1,209 products.
The importer and ultimate consignee were notified of the findings and the failure to comply with mandatory safety standards. The offending merchandise, apart from representing a potential health risk to infants, also lacked the requisite children’s product certificates. Following the testing, results, the CPSC initiated actions for the corrective seizure and recall of the merchandise involved.
