Understanding JPMA Certification
Is Children's Safety their Number One Focus?
Parents may be misled into thinking that products that carry the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association (JPMA) seal are better or safer than other similar products on the market. However, what the JMPA seal indicates is that a company has enough capital to pay the membership fees to get certification (costing $10,000 or more), and that the JPMA has tested it to meet the minimum government safety standards [Fields 2008[]. Recent events involving recalls and questionable products approved by JPMA may jolt parents out of a false sense of security.
History of the JPMA
Established in 1962, the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association's goal was to create a testing program that investigated product safety. The organization has grown in recent years to include over 300 companies in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. JPMA has collaborated with the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and the American Society of Testing and Materials (ASTM) to investigate children's products from a host of categories - cribs, car seats, toys and more.
The Largest Crib Recall in History
Casting doubt over the integrity of the JPMA is the 2007 recall of over one million Simplicity cribs that carried their coveted seal of approval. These cribs have a serious design flaw that resulted in the deaths of three children caused from the drop-down rail. Even more alarming, these cribs had been passing the JPMA's testing for 10 years before the recall was offered, and the recall came more than two years after the first child had died.
BPA Bottles and Crib Bumper Pad Safety
Concerned parents and children's interest groups further point out the JPMA's lack of response to research on the safety of bottles containing BPA or to the use of crib bumper pads. Despite the facts that Canada has legislation on the floor to ban the use of BPA in baby products, that California has already enacted similar legislation, and that major manufacturers like Babies R Us and WalMart are phasing out those bottles, JPMA still stands by its seal. Even more eye brow raising is that JPMA has been accused of lobbying against bottle regulations.
Similarly, the JPMA has been slow to respond to recent research detailing how unsafe crib bumper pads are. There have been several accusations that the association has misled the public about the safety of crib bumper pads. Some may begin to wonder exactly who is the JPMA trying to protect - children or the companies that hold membership to the JPMA?
Testing to the Minimum Safety Standards
Parents need to remember that the JPMA tests to the minimum government safety standards developed by the CPSC and the ASTM. However, many parents may desire to purchase products that exceed government minimum standards.
What parents should take away from this is that, although JPMA seal does indicate some testing has occurred on the product, the certification is not the end-all-be-all. Parents should research and scrutinize the products that they purchase for their children and always read the safety guidelines thoroughly. Taking the JPMA's certification as a gospel of assured safety, rather than striving to be an informed consumer may be a huge mistake.
References:
Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association
Baby Bargains. Denise and Alan Fields. 2008
U.S. CPSC Simplicity Crib Recall
