Toys containing magnets will soon need to carry a health warning in Europe following several cases of serious injury and even death to children, the EU's executive arm announced Thursday.
"Today is a good day for consumers," said European Commission spokeswoman Helen Kearns after the measure was approved by representatives of the 27 EU member states earlier in the day.
"People underestimate the serious level of injury that can be caused," she told reporters in Brussels.
"Tiny magnets in toys are often no bigger than the size of a pencil eraser, but they have become very powerful," echoed European Commissioner for Consumers, Meglena Kuneva in a statement.
"There is mounting evidence of the real injury that can be caused when tiny magnets end up in children's mouths if they become loose and are swallowed".
The Commission cited a fatal accident reported in the US in 2006 and dozens of instances of children swallowing at least two magnets, or one magnet and a metal object, and requiring surgery after the magnets combine and cause lacerations to the digestive tract.
Under the new measure, which must yet be formally approved by the EU parliament and member states, toys with magnets will have to include a warning label on the packaging or the toy itself outlining the risks.
European Commission spokeswoman Kearns said she hoped the labels could become mandatory "this side of summer".
She added that some member states already have such a system in place, giving as an example the Swiss maker of the popular Geomag products.
Last year US toy firm Mattel recalled millions of China-made toys, including many with magnets.
The European Commission last month called for carcinogenic and toxic chemicals to be banned from children's toys and for wider use of safety warnings to avoid accidents.
China is the world's top toy exporter, selling 22 billion toys overseas in 2006.
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AFP 281334 GMT 02 08
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