[adcollins]

Hi all. We are getting our daughter a play kitchen for Christmas and I'd love to get her a little play food set to go with it. All of the ones I've seen so far are made in China. With all the news about high lead content in Chinese products, I'd like to be able to avoid them, particularly in a toy like play food, which she's probably going to put in her mouth at some point.

Does anyone know of manufacturers who make toys in America? I'd especially love to know if you know of any play food sets that aren't made in China!

Thanks!

Anne

[riverview]

i am not sure if can post,but go to FAO.com and they have many made in the US. I emailed and asked. Doug and Melissa is another.

[adcollins]

Thanks. Actually, I had been planning on Doug & Melissa, but on one site when I clicked on the specifications, it said "made in China."

Does anyone know if D&M have some things made in China?

Anne

[CEB]

Apparently a lot of Doug & Melissa toys are made in China - I was surprised to find that out when we were looking at train sets. A potential alternative for play food is Haba (available on Amazon or just google their name to get other sellers) - their stuff is made in Germany..not quite the US I know but I am not aware of problems with German made toys. DS has a marble track from them he just loves.

[DPline]

Check out the website neatsolutions.com. They don't specify where their play food is made, but they do address the toy safety issue and talk about the testing they do, etc. The food is under "Learning Resources" and then "Pretend and Play."

[Amber76]

Have you checked out Step 2? I know that their catalog is good about specifying what is made in America, and what is made in America but uses parts from other countries. It might be worth a quick websearch.

[Wonk]

L.A.R.K. Toys - Tin Toys, Wood Toys, Carousel Animals - A magical place to shop and browse.

Another option is to call an expert. Lark Toys is the largest independent toy store in the country. They have all sorts of unique things and would most likely know about things outside the big toy stores.

[josiah1112]

I love play mobile toys.They sell them at Learning Express toy stores and many are good from 18 months on.They are made in Germany(European toys are very good quality).
We don't do Chinese toys any more either.
Many of the Doug and Melissa toys ARE made in China.It is sad but they give the appearance of "natural" but made in China? I don't think so.

There are many natural resources in the Mothering magazine.It is a natural living magazine-

[monksmom]

I have been doing a lot of non-China research online too. I don't know about play food, but I found an alternative to Play Dough (which is now made in China). It is called Play Clay and is made in the USA. Also check out European toys, especially Germany - there are several good importers.

[RavenSong]

I think I found a site you might be interested in that sells American-made play food sets that are made for schools. Here is what they say:

These items are safety tested on an ongoing basis by independent laboratories to ensure they comply with applicable safety standards and laws, including those for lead and heavy metals!

The play food sets we offer are made by a manufacturer who services the school market, not by a toy company. Not only are these sets are made to withstand the rigors of a classroom environment, they are manufactured to be as realistic looking as possible. And of course, they are made of non toxic materials so they are child-safe.

Here is the link to their site: http://www.liveandlearn.com/daycare/food.html

Hope this helps!

[adcollins]

Thanks for the suggestions everyone! I think I found some that will do very well.

It's so frustrating when manufacturers don't give the information about where things are actually made, so I love the web sites that actually tell you. I'd been nervous about the lead paint issue anyway, and that post the other day about the date rape drug effects from a toy made in China just confirmed it for me.

Thanks again,
Anne