Manufacturer urges standards for handle bristle grill brushes
A Canadian manufacturer says safety standards need to be imposed on handle bristle griddle brushes sole in this country.
Currently, Health Canada is endeavour a risk criticism to weigh a problem of bristles that can come off a griddle cleaning tools, turn stranded in food and incidentally ingested.
“Unless a product can be shown to be safe, it should be pulled off shelves,” Tony Ponikvar, CEO of Hamilton, Ont.-based Felton Brushes, told CBC News.
Health Canada began a risk criticism after receiving reports of 9 injuries from bristle incidents given 2011. A operation of intensity actions could outcome from a risk assessment — such as a product recall, a stop sale order or product seizures —  if Health Canada finds a brushes poise a risk to health or safety.
The sovereign regulator pronounced it has perceived some-more reports of damage from a open after a CBC News story Monday about a risk assessment.
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“I consider they should do a stop sale and a remember formed on certain criteria,” Ponikvar said, adding a criteria need to be formed on a peculiarity of a product.
Another choice open to a regulator would be to advise standards for a make of a brushes, that competence make Canada a initial nation to do so, pronounced Tyler Goodier, section conduct for automatic and earthy hazards during Health Canada’s risk government bureau.
Standards could be possibly intentional — grown by attention — or mandatory, and put into regulations enforced by Health Canada.
“We now discharge 37 opposite regulations on several products, like cribs, cradles, bassinets, matches — there are many of them,” Goodier said.
“Oftentimes it’s sufficient to have a intentional customary that exists that attention members know about,” he said. Â “They can get a duplicate of it and follow it and make protected products though a need for an overarching square of legislation.” Â
Ponikvar pronounced his company, that has done brushes for a accumulation of industries given 1933, made griddle brushes in Canada until a 1970s, though had stopped creation them until recently as retailers began importing cheaper brushes from other countries.
‘Race to a bottom’
That started a “race to a bottom” over price, he said, ensuing in compromised quality.
One inhabitant tradesman told CBC News a cost of a wire-bristle griddle brush starts as low as $1.69.
“The bottom line is, we get what we compensate for,” Ponikvar said.
In new years, Felton Brushes resumed creation griddle brushes, solely they’re for high-end users during a sell cost of around $24, Ponikvar said.
“The bottom line is, we get what we compensate for.”
– Tony Ponikvar, CEO, Felton Brushes
The bristles are wider in hole than those of other brushes, he said, and final year his association had a griddle brush tested by a standards classification CSA Group.
“We’ve grown a possess inner standard, and from a reserve perspective, we consider any brush entrance into this nation should reside by some arrange of a standard,” Ponikvar said.
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Kim Schellenberg of Red Deer,  Alta., is among those job on Health Canada to stop a sale of a brushes. She incidentally ingested a bristle left behind on a griddle and went by dual surgeries as doctors attempted to mislay a unpleasant handle from her neck.
Schellenberg pronounced after that happened in 2014, she went to a store where griddle brushes are sole and did her possess test.
“I only went adult to one in a store and only pulled and [a bristle] came right out,” Schellenberg said. “I only started to cry since it is so not necessary.”
Ponikvar disagreed with those who advise that all sales of handle bristle brushes should end.
“I don’t consider it’s a satisfactory criticism since there’s certain peculiarity levels,” he said. “I determine with them, a inexpensive griddle brush should not be sold. But a high peculiarity brush that is protected and does a job should be sold.”
He pronounced his company’s brushes are subjected to testing. “We pull-test ours from each batch.”
Felton Brushes CEO Tony Ponikvar pronounced his association had a barbeque griddle brush tested by a CSA Group, a standards organization. (Submitted/Felton Brushes)
Health Canada expects to finish a risk criticism by a finish of this summer.
If it were to advise standards be grown for griddle brushes, Goodier said, a Standards Council of Canada — a Crown house — could get involved.
He pronounced a Standards Council could trigger a routine involving attention stakeholders and any members of a open meddlesome in a issue.
“The concentration is always on reserve first,” Goodier said. “It’s not about safeguarding one’s turf. When we lay down to write a reserve standard, it’s all about accomplishing a idea of essay a customary that indeed delivers on safety.”
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Article source: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/manufacturer-urges-standards-for-wire-bristle-barbecue-brushes-1.4212888?cmp=rss