Most Americans take the safety of the candy we eat for granted. The majority of us don’t even think about biting into a non-food object when we place a piece of American candy into our mouths. That’s because of a little known 1930’s era federal statute which prohibits the sale of such candy. That is not the case in Canada. There, parents can by a chocolate egg for their kids, which contains another smaller plastic egg inside that holds a small toy. The toys can present a choking hazard for children.
A U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent says that each year around Easter, they seize tens of thousands of those eggs on the U.S. and Canada border, mostly from people unaware that each egg carries a fine of $2,500. The majority of the eggs are manufactured by an Italian candy manufacturer called the Ferrero Group. They are the same people who make Nutella spread. The candy eggs with toys inside are called Kinder Eggs and marketed towards kids aged 3 to 8 years old.
As far back as August 1997, a Chicago-based company called Kreiner Imports Inc. issued a voluntary recall of the Kinder Eggs it had sold. They did that in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Despite the decades-old recall and ban, customs people say that in 2011, they seized over 60,000 of the eggs in international mail and in the baggage of people traveling.
Americans injured by defective products may be eligible for compensation with regards to their medical costs and other incidental expenses. Manufacturers have a duty to keep dangerous products out of the marketplace where they have a potential to harm consumers.
Source: International Business News, “Kinder Surprise Chocolate Eggs Brought Into Corporate Battles, Gun Debates” Kathleen Caulderwood, Jun. 10, 2014