McDonald's Recalls Shrek Drinking Glasses

McDonald's Corp has recalled millions of "Shrek Forever After" Collectable Drinking Glasses with "Shrek" characters printed on the glass surface because of contamination with a toxic metal, Reuters reported.

Cadmium was found in the print of the four movie characters on the glassware, Shrek, Fiona, Puss in Boots and Donkey, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and Canada's Health ministry Health Canada were cited as saying.

The voluntary recall affected a total of about 13.4 million drinking glasses; 12 million were sold in the United States and 1.4 million were sold in Canada for $2 each as part of a promotional campaign.  

The selling of the tainted glasses, made by ARC International of Millville, New Jersey, started on May 21, according to media reports.  In Canada, the glasses were sold between May 10th and June 4th, 2010, Health Canada says on its website.

The CPSC kept the level of the contamination confidential. Reuters cited the consumer protection agency's spokesman Scott Wolson as saying that a small amount of cadmium, a cancer-causing agent, can come to the surface of the glass.

McDonald's says on its website that it has had the products tested and they don't have any toxicity or safety issue.  The products were recalled only as a precautionary measure.

The recall was initiated after the CPSC was notified by the office of U.S. Rep. Jackie Speier, a California Democrat, which got tipped by an anonymous source last week.

The Shrek glasses were tested by a third party laboratory accredited by the CPSC and test results showed that the painted design of the movies characters contains cadmium at levels higher than the new safety standard that has yet to be released.

Those who purchased the recalled products are advised to stop using the products and contact McDonald's at 1-877-495-5502 or by visiting the  McDonald's website for a refund.

McDonald's shares fell 1.3 percent to 66.95 on the New York Stock Exchange on Friday afternoon.  But the fall may not have anything to do with the recall.

Cadmium does not play any constructive physiological role in the human body. Chronic exposure to even low levels of this toxic metal can elevate the risk of all types of cancer.

Joseph P. at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health reviewed the mechanisms of cadmium carcinogenesis and found that exposure to the metal can raise lung cancer risk in humans.

In the Aug 2009 issue of Toxicology and applied pharmacology, Joseph reported that the metal raises cancer risk by changing gene expression, inhibiting DNA damage repair, inducing oxidative stress, and apoptosis.

For more information, visit mcdonalds.com or mcdonalds.ca and cpsc.gov.

By Jimmy Downs and editing by  Rachel Stockton