Kinder surprise egg facing ban

2008-08-07 14:07

Berlin - Despite being a massive hit with children and adults alike, German lawmakers want to ban Kinder surprise eggs on safety grounds, press reports said on Thursday.

Millions of the chocolate eggs with a toy inside are sold every year in Europe's biggest economy, but according to a parliamentary health commission it is dangerous to combine food and toys in one product, the Bild daily said.

"Children cannot tell the difference between a toy and food," the Welt newspaper cited Miriam Gruss from the commission as saying.

A spokesperson for Ferrero, the Italian confectionery firm that has made the eggs since 1974, said a ban would be unjustified as the figures or toys are enclosed in a yellow plastic capsule.

"There is absolutely no evidence that there is an increased danger from the combination of food and toys," Ferrero spokesperson Elise Glaab told Die Welt.

Ferrero brings out 20 new sets of figures every year for the eggs, as well as 150 new kits for toys that have to be put together with the help of a tiny instructions sheet, the paper said.

The commission is also looking at forcing youngsters to wear cycle helmets and making schoolbooks lighter so children don't injure themselves or tire themselves out carrying them around all day, the paper added.

- AFP