(15 Aug 2007) SHOTLIST
1. Various exteriors of Haba toy company
2. Haba toys on display
4. Close up of boxes of baby toys on shelves
5. Games on shelves
6. Pan of games on shelves
7. Pan of box of building block toy
8. Interior of Haba store
9. SOUNDBITE (German) Karina Schelua, customer:
"All Haba products are very appropriate for children. The colours are very rich and nice and the quality is very good. They also last a long time."
10. Various of machines making wooden toy parts
11. Employee sawing wooden toys
13. Pan of paint vats
14. Various of toys in vats of lacquer
16. Lacquer dripping on toys
17. Toys in vats of lacquer
18. SOUNDBITE (German) Matthias Loehnert, responsible for quality assurance at the Haba company:
"For our baby toys, we only use lacquers that are water-based, which are free of solvents. That means the hardening of the lacquers works by evaporation of water. The stains we use are water-based as well. Equally, we only use lacquers which are certified. That means the materials we use for our baby toys and toys for older children are certified according to the official standards and they are permanently checked by independent institutes."
19. Various of employees packing games into boxes
21. Various of a woman putting together a baby chewing ring
22. Various of a woman putting chewing ring into a box
STORYLINE
As US toy-making giant Mattel Inc. announced the global recall of more than 18 (m) million toys on Tuesday over possible lead-paint and magnet hazards for children, one German toy maker says it aims to provide an eco-friendly alternative.
The Haba company, based in the German town of Bad Rodach, has been manufacturing wooden toys since 1938.
Today, according to the company website, Haba manufactures all kinds of toys but is careful to select materials that are "ecologically beneficial."
That, says the company, means using as many natural materials as possible such as wood, leather, cardboard, and glass.
"For our baby toys we only use lacquers that are water-based, which are free of solvents," said Matthias Loehnert, in charge of quality assurance.
"That means the materials we use for our baby toys and toys for older children are certified according to the official standards and they are permanently checked by independent institutes," he added.
Although more expensive, the toys produced by Haba are better, according to one customer.
"The colours are very rich and nice and the quality is very good," said Karina Schelua.
In recent years there has seen a rise in "ethical shopping," both in Germany and in other parts of the world.
In the United Kingdom, a 2006 survey by the Co-Operative bank found that "ethical spending" in the UK had surpassed �29.3 (b) billion (58.5 (b) billion US dollars) in 2005 an increase of 11 percent over the previous year.
The study said that increasing demand for organic food, green energy, fair trade products, and naturally made goods had contributed to the rise.
The Ethical Consumer Research Association, a UK-based organisation, said that many plastics and chemicals used by some toymakers were "environmentally damaging" and encouraged the production of wooden and other naturally made toys.
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