Product Quality Problems in China Are Legal Risks at Home
Monday, March 10, 2008 20:28
Last summer, one of my primary positions when it came to the product safety scandal was that importers had to ensure their supply lines were just as compliant in China as they were in the U.S.
It is a simple.. SIMPLE.. risk assessment really that some (maybe many) failed to fully understand, and as we all saw in the media over and over again, there were firms whose inability to follow simple risk assessments and make investments in quality assurance got caught.
Toxic tanks, lead paint Barbies, killer toothpaste… and so on… and while China as a country took the initial volley of blame, I continually pressed the point that these quality problems were a commercial issue and that firms needed to stop treating outsourcing like a trip through the local McDonald’s Drive-thru
Product quality, quality control, and risk
assessment are not abstract concepts, and spending money on ensuring the strength in them is not an expense. It is an INVESTMENT.
Cleaning up the problem is the expense, and if the fact that Mattel had to spend millions to recall defective toys didn’t convince executives that the brands would ultimately pay for their failure to understand risk, perhaps this article (h/t Consumerist) will Charges Filed Against Importers Of Toxic Toothpaste
the key phrase (emphasis is mine) in the article is:
The companies are liable for distributing the tainted product even if they had no direct knowledge of the risk because they were negligent in not ensuring the toothpaste was safe, Supervising Deputy City Attorney Jerry Baik said
no sir.. actually buy no having any direct control of the process I thought it was perfectly safe.. Look Ma. NO HANDS!
