On CNN this morning there was a story about lead in Christmas wreaths made in China. Apparently it’s on the green wire coating on the tiny lights. Only CA requires a warning label and that’s where this was discovered. Now, many folks think the CA regulations are bit harsh and that the left coast has generally gone overboard. HOWEVER – the allowable level of lead in products is now one-sixth what it was in the 1960s. We are still discovering how damaging small amounts of lead can be. Our children handle these items and then stick their adorable little fingers right in their mouths or into that holiday candy dish.
Here’s how to avoid this problem. Get your wreaths locally from tree farmers and craft fairs or local stores. Don’t light them. If you do choose to light them don’t let your children handle the lights. Here are some sources of American made synthetic Christmas items. I have yet to find any holiday lights made in America or lights which are certified lead-free.
ChristmasDepot.com
American made artificial Christmas trees and garland.
Christmas In America LLC
American made Christmas trees and more.
Oak Tree Enterprises
Aluminum Christmas Trees made in the USA. Go retro!
USChristmasTree.com
American made Christmas trees.
Why not get your tree from a local tree farm? Christmas trees are a renewable resource. Many communities now pick up used trees and recycle them into mulch. You’ll be supporting a local farmer, preserving wooded lands (it’ll be re-planted) and avoiding the environmental cost of shipping trees cross-country. Real trees smell great and look wonderful. Make a wonderful family memory!
Loved finding your site. My husband, who is a dental tech -makes crowns and bridges, etc, lost his job about a year ago as they started making these in China (most dentist may even know that). I am trying to purchase US but it is hard to find. I am looking for all the resources I can to purchase US made products.
Debbie aka The Real World Martha
Thanks! I’m looking at my crowns in a whole new light now and hoping the porcelain is pure. Good wishes to you and your husband!
Lynn
Anyone out there know of any trees at any stores that are lead free? My daughter recently handled one that made her fingers numb. Scary… Called Wal-Mart and was told Christmas tree boxes do not give any info as to whether or not they contain lead. I find this enlightening and health protective news as I was unaware fake trees contained lead. If we are banning China how is it we are justified in distributing lead based trees to our own people and pets??? Can they not produce these products without lead being involved? Thank you.
My understanding is that it is the wire on the lights that has the lead in it. So a pre-lit tree, and I guess most of them are, will have lead in the light wire coating.
If the product contains lead levels below a certain threshold there is no requirement to label them, except in California. It’s a shame, really. Here is an intersting site. http://www.checnet.org/healthehouse/education/articles-detail.asp?Main_ID=700
Perhaps a tree that’s not pre-lit would be lead-free? My understanding is that Christmas trees which are USA made cannot, by law, contain lead. It’s the imported trees which may have lead. I could be wrong however as manufacturers are not going to admit to lead being there if they can avoid it. This company does say their trees are lead-free. http://www.uschristmastree.com/main.sc
Look at checnet.org. They state that artificial trees are made out of pvc and that pvc has some lead in it to make it flexible. As the pvc deteriorates, lead dust can fall to the floor, making artificial trees a lead hazard.
checnet.org offers holiday lights that they say contain lead only in the power cord.
christmasdepot.com says they have artificial trees that are usa made and lead free. They don’t say about their led lights, though.
Yes, I’m reading about trees shedding lead. One known source of lead poisoning is household dust so that fact is scary.
The cord on lights is where lead tends to be, my husband the engineer says it makes the cord more flexible and that is why it is used there.
As for lead free xmas trees, make a search on “USA made christmas trees” you’ll find a few links:
http://www.uschristmastree.com/main.sc
Please send me an email telling me if you could read this, because when I press “submit comment” I only get “discarded”
teslajovovich@yahoo.com
Google “RoHS compliant christmas lights”.
Here’s one of the results you’ll find:
http://www.eadlighting.com/twinkling_lights_clear_indoor.asp
Get educated on RoHS directive, google “RoHS wikipedia”
Very Happy Holidays!
RoHS stands for “Restriction of Hazardous Substances”, a directive applied in EU to protect health and environmental impact. Really important news. Gear up and let’s all have a wonderful lead-free Xmas!
Organic trees, IPM-free are a good option and you can find them at local farms. That would complete the package.
Thanks for the information and great links. My Grandson struggles with autism and immune deficiency disease. He loves to help decorate the tree. (Grandma always does the lights before his arrival) I was thinking of going artificial this year. What an eye opener that was. At least most of the trees I was interested in did have the California lead warning, and has caused my to educate myself better. It just goes to show, buyer beware! The last thing I want in my home is something that can cause him more problems. Even though a Christmas tree is not a child’s toy, it is almost impossible to stop them from touching it as they ooh and ahh.
Just an FYI, at least some USA artificial tree manufacturers make trees with lead in them. I called a few (including those listed above) and all of them admitted over the phone that their artificial trees are not lead-free. I’ll post here if I do ever manage to find a lead-free artificial tree. But so far, no luck.
After reading through this article, I just feel that I need more information on the topic. Could you suggest some more resources ?
I noticed that this is not the first time at all that you write about this topic. Why have you chosen it again?