Recall of the Week: California Innovations lunch boxes due to freezer gel pack ingestion hazard
January 29, 2012
By Rita R. Robison
About 248,000 expandable, insulated lunch boxes with freezer gel pack are being recalled by California Innovations Inc.
Gel that contains diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol can leak out of damaged freezer gel packs, posing a poisoning hazard if ingested by children or adults.
California Innovations has received two separate reports of a dog chewing and ingesting gel from the gel pack, the company and U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said in a statement. One dog reportedly died from ingestion of the gel. The other was reported to have received treatment and has recovered.
The recalled product is a Ci Sport three-piece, expandable, insulated lunch box set, which includes the lunch box, aluminum bottle, and the freezer gel pack. The lunch box of the recalled set has the code "1-61731-99-57" printed on one of the two white labels that are sewn under the white fastener inside the main compartment.
The lunch box is 8 inches wide, 5 inches deep, and 10.25 inches high. It’s made of vinyl, polyester nylon, and crushed nylon and has a logo with the words "Ci Sport" attached to the upper left corner.
The lunch box has a carrying handle on the top and a mesh-carrying pouch for the aluminum bottle on the side. The aluminum bottle measures 2.75 inches in diameter and 7.5 inches tall.
The gel pack is a 6-inch by 4-inch transparent plastic pouch filled with blue liquid gel. The words "Cryofreeze" and "Ice Pack/Hot Pack" are printed in white letters on the front of the pouch.
The lunch box was available in four colors: navy blue, red, black and denim blue.
Manufactured in China, the lunch boxes were sold at Costco Wholesale Clubs, Leon Korol, and Cost U Less stores between May 2007 and September 2008 for about $10.
Consumers should immediately stop using the gel packs and dispose of them according to federal, state, and/or local regulations, California Innovations and the commission advise. It’s recommended that consumers contact their local waste disposal authority for instructions.
Consumers may return the lunch box set to Costco for a full refund or may receive a $5 cash refund for the gel pack only by contacting California Innovations.
For additional information, call California Innovations at 800-722-2545 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET Monday through Friday, e-mail [email protected], or visit the firm's website at www.californiainnovations.com.
For details on other recalls, see www. recalls.gov.
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