As a parent or a consumer, you may have read or heard reports casting doubt on the safety of soft plastic toys made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), or vinyl. Claims have been made that when children suck and chew on soft vinyl toys, such as teethers or pacifiers, they are being exposed to "hazardous materials." International Council of Toy Industries (ICTI), the worldwide association of the toy industry, along with many other organizations and scientific groups, would like to set the record straight.

The toy industry has an absolute commitment to ensure that its products are safe. Along with voluntary standards established by the industry, we conform to stringent government standards for the safety and health of all individuals, especially children. The safety of toys is, without question, the industry’s top priority, and it supports any scientific investigation which can help improve or reinforce the safety of its products.

We have prepared this brochure to explain some of the issues that relate to vinyl toys and assure you – as parents and consumers – that vinyl toys are safe.

Vinyl is one of the world’s most widely used and most researched plastics with a safety record of more than 50 years. 

Vinyl is a material used in many toys, and, despite sensationalized and irresponsible claims made recently by some groups, toy manufacturers are confident that it is safe. This confidence in vinyl is based on the findings and opinions of national regulatory agencies and some of the most respected scientists in the world. 

Soft vinyl contains a substance called phthalates. Research into the effects of phthalates does not show that phthalates themselves are in any way hazardous to children’s health. In fact, there is no scientific evidence that these chemicals put people of any age at risk. 

While vinyl is the principal component in a wide range of products for consumers, the healthcare industry, and other highly regulated industries, some organizations have targeted products for children due to the high visibility of toys and the opportunities they offer for media coverage. Their research methods are at best questionable and their claims unfounded. The allegations against the safety of vinyl toys cannot be substantiated by scientific fact. They simply are not true. 

Vinyl and phthalates have been used in the manufacture of toys and baby products for 40 years. Generations of children have played with, and sucked on, toys made from pliable vinyl, and there is no evidence of any adverse effects. Indeed, the widespread use of phthalates in a number of non-toy products has led to extensive research verifying its safety.