Opinion: Are Chinese gadgets deadly, too?

Computerworld - It seems that nearly everything is made in China these days. We enjoy the low Wal-Mart prices Chinese manufacturing makes possible. But there's a dark side. It has emerged through thousands of news and government reports that food and other goods made in China can prove toxic, poisonous -- even deadly.

Dog and cat food ingredients made in China killed dozens of pets in the U.S. this year. Toxic Chinese cough syrup killed at least 94 people in Panama. Chinese tires sold in the U.S. spontaneously shredded on the freeway. "European" toys made in China and sold in the U.S. were made with poisonous metal (in fact, every one of the 24 toys recalled for safety in the U.S. last year was made in China). Jewelry made in China and sold in the U.S. was found to be made with "recycled" toxic "eWaste" -- the components of computers and other electronics. The list goes on and on.

It should be no surprise that Chinese goods are problematic. The country has launched into such rapid economic growth that it hasn't had time to develop the culture, institutions and regulatory environment the West and some Asian countries spent decades building up to protect consumers from shoddy goods.

The Chinese government has in place only the bluntest of instruments. As a result of international pressure over Chinese food safety, for example, Beijing executed the leader of the country's Food and Drug Administration. The government also occasionally storms factories with police and arrests management. But these high-profile measures serve only as publicity stunts to demonstrate how serious the government takes complaints. In reality, Beijing has almost no real control over product quality.

And the U.S. has very little control over imports. The government relies heavily on assurances from the exporting country. The "honor system" works great for goods imported from Japan or Finland. But China?

The inconvenient truth is that nobody is monitoring the safety of most products coming into the U.S. from China. You're on your own.

U.S. consumers have already learned to avoid Chinese toothpaste. But what about cell phones?

The trouble with cell phones

Unlike, say, toothpaste, which you put in your mouth, cell phones seem safe enough. In reality, however, it's hard to make a safe cell phone. A typical cell phone contains heavy, toxic metals such as lead and beryllium, poisonous flame retardants like bromide and enough cadmium to contaminate thousands of gallons of water. It's difficult and expensive to use these ingredients without exposing the user to toxins.

The big cell phone manufacturing countries -- the U.S., Finland, Sweden, Germany, South Korea and Japan -- go to great lengths to control and monitor the safety of cell phones. National governments, consumer and industry groups, magazines and journals, and other players all monitor, test and comment on the safety of phones.