Tests show lead in pet supplies

BARRE, Vt. - An environmental research group says tests on 60 back-to-school supplies and 400 pet products found nearly a quarter of them contained lead.

The Michigan-based Ecology Center also says that 90 percent of the backpacks, binders and lunch boxes contained chemicals of concern such as lead, cadmium, mercury, bromine, chlorine, and arsenic.

The group Wednesday released the results of tests on 900 products on its website, HealthyStuff.org.

Although lead was detected, only 1 percent of school products contained levels higher than 300 parts per million, the Consumer Product Safety Commission's standard for lead in children's products. Seven percent of pet supplies and 64 percent of women's handbags had higher levels.