Table Of ContentTHE TRUE C O S T O F
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How to Shop to Change the World
MARY COLSON
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First published in 2013 by Wayland
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Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Colson, Mary, author CIP available at Library of Congress
The true cost of toys / Mary Colson.
(Consumer nation : how to shop to change the world)
Includes index.
Issued in print and electronic formats.
ISBN 978-0-7787-0486-7 (bound).--ISBN 978-0-7787-0490-4 (pbk.).--
ISBN 978-1-4271-8211-1 (html).--ISBN 978-1-4271-8215-9 (pdf)
1. Toy industry--Juvenile literature. I. Title.
HD9993.T692C65 2014 j338.4’768872 C2014-900375-7
C2014-900376-5
CoNTeNTs
The Truth Behind Toys ...........................................................................................................................................4
Toy world map ......................................................................................................................................................................6
Ch p e G o a e .........................................................................................................................................8
supply and demand .....................................................................................................................................................10
Quality control? ...........................................................................................................................................................12
Working for change ...................................................................................................................................................14
What is fair trade?.....................................................................................................................................................16
h t W ’ ..........................................................................................................................18
CasE sTUDy 1: Child’s play? The life of a child sweatshop worker ..20
Toys, trafficking, and desperation ......................................................................................................22
CasE sTUDy 2: assembly lines and overtime ................................................................24
h 3 n .......................................................................................................................26
The rubber tapping trade ................................................................................................................................28
Cotton and chemicals ..............................................................................................................................................30
CasE sTUDy 3: Caution: this toy may harm your health! .................................32
Waste matters ................................................................................................................................................................34
Ch p e Hea y w k a p ay ...................................................................................................36
Making changes ............................................................................................................................................................38
a childhood for everyone? ............................................................................................................................40
Fair play and big business .............................................................................................................................42
shop to change the world ..............................................................................................................................44
Glossary ................................................................................................................................................................................46
For more information .............................................................................................................................................47
Index ..............................................................................................................................................................................................48
The truth behind toys
When you think back to shopping for the latest toy
when you were a child, did you think about how
your toy might have affected people elsewhere in
the world? Most likely not, but what about now? Did you
ever wonder where your childhood toys came from?
What about your model car or plane, or your board
games? What was behind the shiny metal, moving parts,
flashing lights, and colored plastic?
Dying for toys
The toy industry is an $83 billion dollar global giant. all
over the world there is a high demand for toys with a particular
rush around Christmas. In order to meet this demand, there is a
human and environmental cost. Toys may look cute and cuddly, but
what lies beneath the fur and the fluff? Child labor, worker deaths
c e , and eco-disasters are just some of the hidden costs of our
treasured toys.
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What’s a sweatshop?
Many toy factories are in countries of y
where the laws are very different from full n to
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for very little pay. Their working a wh
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work in them, too.
People power
This book will scratch beneath the surface go beyond the beautifully packaged
toys we buy, and examine the links between supply demand labor conditions,
and environmental issues such as manufacturing and waste. It will also look
at companies with c that are helping to make things better all
the way along the p c . It will show that you have the power to be
an h c and shop to change the world.
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Toy world map
The toy industry in the U.S.
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Europe.
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There are many toy factories
in the cities of Shenzhen
and Guangzhou in Guangdong
Province, China.
The Asian toy market
is the fastest growing
in the world.
The consumer toy
market in Japan is worth
$6 billion per year.
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toy factories.
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Taiwan is a
large video game
manufacturer, along
with the U.S.
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Global trade
Toys are part of the magic of childhood. They allow us to
play as well as nurture our imaginations, develop our skills,
and help us learn to socialize with others. Think about the toys
you played with when you were young: dolls, dress-up clothes,
tea sets, farm animals, bulldozers, battery-powered toys,
and clockwork toys. Where did they all come from? Who made
them? What’s their toy story?
When someone buys a toy in a store, it
is the end of a long chain. The toy’s life
began a long time before it was bought.
But what is this chain?
What is a supply chain?
a supply chain is made up of all the
individuals businesses, and resources
y o.se involved in creating a product. The chain
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