Ask Disney to clean up their lunch boxes

Do you have kids toting lunch boxes to school, or even preschool?  I do, and I recently learned a startling fact about some of the lunch boxes on the market today.  Many of them contain phthalates, which is a chemical now linked to hormonal disruptions, reduced sperm counts and some cancers.  Disney’s lunch boxes were rated to have 30 times the amount of phthalates deemed safe for toys by the federal government.  The toy industry is phasing out phthalates to protect our children.  Three of the chemicals have been permanently restricted, while others are banned during further research.

Here is the crazy thing.  Lunch boxes are not considered toys.  Despite the item being marketed and used by children, they are not regulated as such.  Here is where the power of Mom comes in.  My friend Lori from Groovy Green Livin started a petition to challenge Disney to make their lunch boxes safe.  There are over 57,000 signatures at this time and it’s increasing by the hour.  

This is one of my favorite quotes from Lori,

“Their lunch boxes are covered with beloved characters – like iconic princesses and Spiderman, a character my boys love – but could be shedding toxic chemicals that put my kids at risk,” Alper said. “While Congress works on long-term solutions like the Safe Chemicals Act, corporations like Disney have a responsibility to keep our kids safe now.”

Here is what I ask of you. Please take a moment to sign this petition. Disney has come back saying they follow all safety standards required.  Clearly they are relying on a loophole in the industry standard to back their claims.  As a major children’s retailer, I hope Disney will listen to the many moms, and dads, who want to send their kids to school with a chemical-free lunch box. (If you need some options check out my back to school lunch box post.)  Thank you for your support of this petition.


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