Canada recalls infant pyjamas made in Bangladesh

Health Canada has recalled more than 200,000 George brand sleepers, a type of pyjama meant for infants, that were made in Bangladesh and sold from November 2022 to June 2023 citing choking and ingestion hazards.

The zipper's pulls and foot grips may fall off or get removed through repeated washing, the government department for health-related resources of Canada explained on its website in early October.

As such, consumers should immediately stop using the recalled sleepers and check the style number printed on the collar to determine if they are impacted by this recall, it said.

Consumers can refer to the illustration provided for identifying impacted patterns and if affected, the sleepers can be returned to Wal-Mart stores for a full refund, it added.

However, the regulator was yet to receive any reports of incidents or injuries in Canada as of September 21.

The products were manufactured by Gazipur-based Unique Designers Ltd and distributed by PDS Far-East Ltd of Kowloon, Hong Kong, according to a Canadian government website.

The report of the withdrawal was also posted on the website of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) along with other countries.

The Daily Star could not reach neither Unique Designers Limited nor Wal-Mart Canada Corp for comment.

In a statement, Faruque Hassan, president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, highlighted misinterpretations such as "apparel made in Bangladesh is banned in the mentioned countries".

The products were recalled due to a certain hazard, which is not the mistake of the Bangladeshi manufacturer.

Every product made in Bangladesh must pass through a stringent quality control process and laboratory tests, including those of consumer health and safety, he said.

All exportable products must meet the standards of the buyers and relevant legal requirement of the export markets, Hassan added.

Any product failing to comply with these health and safety requirement are usually rejected by buyers or denied entrance at the destination port, he said.

The alleged products were shipped from Bangladesh in early 2022.

"As of September 21, the company has not received any reports of incidents or injuries in Canada," mentioned the product recall notice of Health Canada.

Any attempt to generalise this incident on the industry and the country at large is unacceptable, said Hassan.

"As the report speaks about 12 countries withdrawing or recalling apparel made in Bangladesh, there is no reference to such claims, and we could not trace any evidence in support of this claim," he said.

"I would also like to clarify the reference to OECD that was mentioned in the news report," Hassan added.

The OECD maintains a "Global portal on product recalls" and the OECD members' product recall notices are listed in this portal.

Recalling products for any valid reason is a standard practice and there are hundreds of such recalls listed in the OECD website as of today.

Furthermore, the OECD website states, "Health Canada recalled more than 200,000 George Brand Sleepers on Wednesday for posing a risk of choking and ingestion."

"The recall of the product, sold at Wal-Mart, is for sizes 0-5T and affects two styles for boys and two for girls. Zipper pulls and foot grips of the sleepers may eventually separate after frequent washing, leading to choking and ingestion hazards," the agency said.

It has not received any reports of injury in Canada, it added.