Our home is filled with eco-friendly toys, largely sent to us for review here on Eco Child’s Play, and we have a family commitment to avoid junk toys. Not only are junk toy materials bad for the environment and your children’s health, Climate Counts has discovered that toy companies are ignoring their impact on climate change.

Climate Counts found that the sector as a whole received the lowest scores of any of the 13 sectors yet scored by Climate Counts—none of the 13 largest companies in the sector scored higher than 40 (out of 100), and eight companies scored zero. The scorecard gives all consumers concerned with the climate crisis and a safe future for children the ability to make informed purchasing decisions. Hasbro led the sector by a significant margin, scoring 40 points.

The 13 toy companies were selected based upon their profits and were ranked based upon their efforts “to assess their own climate footprint, reduce their emissions, support (or block) progress on major climate legislation, and communicate their efforts clearly and comprehensively to consumers.”  Clearly, the results are disappointing and another resaon to only purchase toys from reputable green companies. Wood Turner, Climate Counts Executive Director, explains:

This is our first ranking of this sector and frankly, we were surprised at how far behind they are. The climate crisis poses a threat to our children’s future—it is our children and their children who will suffer from the most serious climate impacts. We know this is an issue parents are concerned about—and we are confident that these companies can show real improvement.

Photo by Anthony Cain © on Flickr under a Creative Commons License