Listen Live
Donate
 on air
    Schedule

    KCRW

    Read & Explore

    • News
    • Entertainment
    • Food
    • Culture
    • Events

    Listen

    • Live Radio
    • Music
    • Podcasts
    • Full Schedule

    Information

    • About
    • Careers
    • Help / FAQ
    • Newsletters
    • Contact

    Support

    • Become a Member
    • Become a VIP
    • Ways to Give
    • Shop
    • Member Perks

    Become a Member

    Donate to KCRW to support this cultural hub for music discovery, in-depth journalism, community storytelling, and free events. You'll become a KCRW Member and get a year of exclusive benefits.

    DonateGive Monthly

    Copyright 2026 KCRW. All rights reserved.

    Report a Bug|Privacy Policy|Terms of Service|
    Cookie Policy
    |FCC Public Files|

    Back to To the Point

    To the Point

    Chinese Imports and Product Safety

    Unsafe tires. Tainted food and toothpaste. Millions of toys with lead paint and tiny magnets. The safety of those products is raising serious questions in the US and, with confidence in the label "Made in China" crucial to that nation's economic expansion, the international safety scare has caught the attention of Chinese officials.

    • rss
    • Share
    By Warren Olney • May 12, 2014 • 1 min read

    Unsafe tires. Tainted food and toothpaste. Millions of toys with lead paint and tiny magnets. The safety of those products is raising serious questions in the US and, with confidence in the label "Made in China" crucial to that nation's economic expansion, the international safety scare has caught the attention of Chinese officials. After medicines turned out to be fakes, the former regulator of food and drugs was executed. After Mattel recalled millions of his products, a toy maker hanged himself. Factories have been closed amid pledges that safety standards will be tightened. Are American companies as much at fault as their Chinese suppliers? Will consumers pay more for greater safety? What about Chinese consumers and the workers who deal with toxic substances? Is it possible to stop buying products made in China? We talk with a woman who tried it.

    The full episode

    2 of 3
    Chinese Imports and Product Safety
    1. 1:38Fed Moves to Cut the Discount Rate, Lifts Stocks
    2. 7:29Chinese Imports and Product SafetyYou’re reading this
    3. 42:13Search Suspended after Mine Rescue Turns Deadly
    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Warren Olney

      former KCRW broadcaster

    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Frances Anderton

      architecture critic and author

    • KCRW placeholder

      Karen Radziner

      Managing Producer, To the Point & Which Way LA?

    • KCRW placeholder

      Katie Cooper

      Producer, 'One year Later'

    • KCRW placeholder

      Rachel Weintraub

      Director of Product Safety, Consumer Federation of America

    • KCRW placeholder

      Abigail Goldman

      Reporter, Los Angeles Times

    • KCRW placeholder

      Bill Primosch

      Senior Director of International Business Policy, National Association of Manufacturers

      NewsNationalPolitics

    The full episode

    2 of 3
    Chinese Imports and Product Safety
    1. 1:38Fed Moves to Cut the Discount Rate, Lifts Stocks
    2. 7:29Chinese Imports and Product SafetyYou’re reading this
    3. 42:13Search Suspended after Mine Rescue Turns Deadly
    Back to To the Point