Melissa & Doug boycott

[Genesis]

Anyone know why there is a boycott going on against Melissa & Doug products? I am curious, because I occasionally purchase this brand.

[Romana]

I haven't heard about it. I know some of their toys are made in China, but I've also heard they have much more strict testing and quality standards than the average toy company. But maybe it's as part of the MIC boycott?

[wonderwahine]

some moms on here are boycotting it, right now I see no reason to, but we dont own a large amount of their stuff, we only have 2 puzzles.

[sophiesue2]

I believe it is just in conjuction with a Chinese products boycott.

[wonderwahine]

Originally Posted by sophiesue2

I believe it is just in conjuction with a Chinese products boycott.

some mamas are also doing it because of lead concerns after positive lead tests in their children. theres a thread somewhere aroudn here about them.

[*Aimee*]

I don't buy their toys because they're MIC. Also, I think they're very expensive. If min. wage in China is 60 cents an hour, why am I paying so much for their toys? I emailed them, asking them if they paid them more or what but nobody has responded.

When I emailed the owner of See Kai Runs about how I felt betrayed they were MIC because it says all over their website and box "Seattle Family!", they said the Mama who owns it is Chinese and pays her employee's a very high wage and offers benefits. Maybe if M & D told me something like that I'd rethink.

[nubianamy]

OMG, that is so cool!

[Enudely]

Darn!! I just bought a M& D wooden fruit and veggie cutting set for dd for X mas. Should I be worried about lead???

[Genesis]

Originally Posted by Enudely

Darn!! I just bought a M& D wooden fruit and veggie cutting set for dd for X mas. Should I be worried about lead???

I was told by the company that they use non-toxic dyes, and that they triple test them.

[ilikethedesert]

Originally Posted by Natural Mommy*J

I was told by the company that they use non-toxic dyes, and that they triple test them.

Some of the stuff we have from them has chipping paint- actually- I should say USED to have. They were plates and forks and cups.

[Unreal]

any of the M&D things we had that had paint on them always had the paint chip off
I don't care if it is lead free--I still don't want my kids eating it.


But I do like the puzzles......

[Nillarilla]

Oh darn. We just bought a mellissa and doug play table for ds for xmas. Maybe I should return it? We have one of their pull toys and ds loves it but yes it does have a slight chip in the paint. I attributed that to the banging on the hard wood floors.

[Genesis]

Yeah, our stuff is beginning to chip as well, and it's practically brand new.

Does anyone know of any companies that sell wooden toys that the paint does not chip? And isn't made in China? It would also be nice to find some toys that are continuously tested for toxins...

[coop_mom]

Originally Posted by Natural Mommy*J

Does anyone know of any companies that sell wooden toys that the paint does not chip? And isn't made in China? It would also be nice to find some toys that are continuously tested for toxins...

The paint on Haba toys (mostly made in Germany) seems better, doesn't seem to chip.

--kristin
mom to Simon, 8/30/06

[CountrylivinmomtoB]

I actually complained to them about chipping paint. They said "They have never had that complaint before!"... so they sent us a new product. So far, so good... but if other people are having that issue, maybe keep complaining.

[ecoteat]

Originally Posted by CountrylivinmomtoB

I actually complained to them about chipping paint. They said "They have never had that complaint before!"... so they sent us a new product.

Same thing happened here, with the same response. I thought it was odd then because we had other M&D toys chip too, not just that one, and I found it hard to believe that it had never happened to anyone else's toys. To hear now that they used the same line on someone else really bugs me! How many times have they said "that's ever happened before"? At least they are kind enough to send a replacement toy, but that's just plain dishonest!

[heidirk]

I saw some very cute toys at rosiehippos.com and novanaturals.com
None are painted, they have a plain beeswax finish. The catalogues are soggy I've drooled over them so much!

[MommaGreenBean]

Ya know, the more I hear about the, the less I like them. I recently tossed our two M&D toys because I've got a bad gut feeling about their ethics. We try to avoid MIC because of ethics (except in the case like above, where they people are actually paid well). They don't seem to be all that different from other huge toy manufacturers, and I'm not trusting them at the moment to look out for my child's best interest.

We're not well off at all, but rather than get more M&D toys, we've chosen to get less and just get ones where it's very likely that they're ethically made and plain wood, not painted (Like from Nova Natural)

[AppleCrisp]

Originally Posted by ilikethedesert

Some of the stuff we have from them has chipping paint- actually- I should say USED to have. They were plates and forks and cups.

All our M&D toys had the paint totally flake off too.

[lexbeach]

Originally Posted by AppleCrisp

All our M&D toys had the paint totally flake off too.

:

They are really poor quality, IMO.

I like Plan toys, which aren't more expensive than M & D and are made in Thailand from renewable rubberwood. They NEVER chip. Plan toys makes a cutting fruits and vegetables set that my ds LOVES. And here's another of their food sets: http://www.luckykids.com/page/LK/PRO...cat4/PLN_34150

Haba also makes some really nice cloth food (I'm not crazy about the scale of their wooden food).

Melissa and Doug toys don't stand up to any of the reasons why I love wooden toys. They aren't made with love. They don't last generations (or even months!). They aren't nice to look at (chipping paint, etc.). They may as well be made out of plastic.

HTH!

Lex