To Prevent Child Poisoning, U.S. Makers of Detergent Packets Announce New Safety Standard

If you've used detergent packets, you know how handy they can be.  You probably also know how dangerous they can be to children who mistake them for some type of treat.  At my house, I purposely put our packets up high because I thought the packaging and friendly smell could lead to an accidental poisoning with my kids.  Thankfully, legislators have recognized this problem and changes will be made.

U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar's office announced that to prevent child poisoning, U.S. makers of detergent packets are finalizing a new voluntary safety standard today.  According to a report from the American Academy of Pediatrics, detergent packets – which often come in flashy, candy-like colors and designs – can pose a serious poisoning risk to young children. Between 2012 and 2013, over 17,000 children were exposed to these packets nationwide. Klobuchar, along with other legislators,  have called on the Consumer Product Safety Commission to ensure that strong protections are in place to prevent poisoning and have cosponsored legislation to protect children from the health risks posed by detergent packets by requiring that the industry improve the packets’ packaging, design, and composition.

Ultimately, manufacturers, the CPSC and consumer advocates worked together to create the new voluntary safety standard to reduce the risk of accidental exposure.  This will lead to improved packaging standards, which will make packaging harder for children to open.  There will also be new packaging designs that will not be as appealing to our children.

This is great news and now I hope they work with the companies that make cleaning liquids that come in pretty purple, red and blue colors to make them less appealing to kids.  Some of those look a lot like juices that are available on the market.