Target Pulls V-Day Message Bears - Message: "We Contain Federally Illegal Levels Of Lead"

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Target Corp. said Tuesday it was pulling its Valentine's Day "Message Bears" from store shelves after California's attorney general raised concerns that the toys have illegal levels of lead. The response comes a day after a letter sent by Attorney General Jerry Brown said testing of the holiday toys revealed lead levels that violate federal law.

The products, which were made in China for Target's in-house brand, were identified as the retailer's two "Message Bears" — one a pink stuffed bear with "XOXO" across the chest and the other a brown stuffed bear with "I Love U" across the chest, with "love" represented by a heart.

Investigators from the Center for Environmental Health, a nonprofit watchdog, found that the bears' inflated vinyl letters contained well over federal limits for lead in products for children under the age of 12.

Beth Hanson, a spokeswoman for the Minneapolis-based Target, said the company received Brown's letter and has pulled the toys. She said it is conducting an internal investigation.

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http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/02/09/financial/f142710S42.DTL