>> David:
This is marketplace.
>> Oh, my god.
>> David: Back on the case.
Is your jewellery toxic?
>> So all of these
are really dangerous.
>> I would not allow my daughter
to put a sample in her mouth.
>> David: Sold in Canada,
made in China.
He uses cadmium.
And why?
>> Cheap.
>> Cheap.
>> As a consumer, as a parent --
I don't think you do
understand actually, so
I'd like to finish my thought
and then I'll go outside.
>> David: Plus, the new
government crackdown.
>> marketplace goes in,
finds elevated levels
of cadmium.
 Health Canada has moved.
>> David: This is
your marketplace.
>> See?
>> What's that?
>> David:
Stella, Sophia and Lucia.
>> I'm ready!
>> David: 12-year-old friends
who love to shop.
>> I like this chain.
>> I like that one the best.
>> Hi.
>> David: Hi, I'm David.
Really good to meet you guys.
Do you think you could each buy
a hundred dollars' worth
of jewellery today?
>> Definitely.
>> Yeah.
>> David: Right, let's do it.
One, two, three, four, five.
>> Thank you.
>> David: We're going to meet
back here when you're done.
Good luck.
Have fun.
We'll see you.
>> Thank you.
>> Bye-bye.
They don't know it yet,
but they're part
of a marketplace test.
We're sending them
into three leading
fashion accessory stores.
First up, Ardene.
>> Oh, my god.
>> Oh, I love this colour
so much.
>> David: Next,
they head to H&M.
>> I think it's a bit much.
>> Which one do you like?
>> David: And finally, Aldo.
>> I already see a couple
stuff I like.
♪ [upbeat]
>> Thank you.
♪ ♪
>> David: Hi,
how did you guys make out?
>>> Good.
>> Good, okay, let's see,
what did you get?
♪ ♪
So here's the bad news.
I'm going to take it all away
from you, but here's why.
We want to test it, just see if
there's anything wrong with it,
and then we're going to get
back together with you and
your parents, sound good?
>>> Yeah.
>> All right, now I take away.
I'm the Grinch.
[girls chuckle]
We also do some shopping
of our own.
 Forever 21,
 Claire's,
 Old Navy,
 Dollarama,
 The Disney Store,
and Sears.
We want to know if the jewellery
we and the girls bought contains
any toxic metals like lead.
We're taking it all to this lab
at the University of Toronto.
Mike Gorton and Miriam Diamond
are with the Department
of Earth Sciences.
>> See if that makes
any difference.
>> David: They're using the same
technology as Health Canada.
First up, this purple ring
from H&M.
>> So we're now scanning
through the x-ray spectrum,
you can already see
a small peak here.
Probably tin.
>> David: When it comes to lead,
turns out all
the pieces are safe.
But when they test
this Aldo bracelet,
the peaks show something else.
>> Yeah, they slightly shifted.
I'll ask the computer
what it thinks everything is.
And sure enough, cadmium,
cadmium, cadmium, and cadmium.
>> Wow.
>> David: Cadmium?
>> Cadmium's a metal that
can be very toxic if ingested,
can damage kidney, liver,
immune function, basically
any major system in your body
can be harmed by cadmium.
>> David: James van Loon is
the director of risk management
at Health Canada's
consumer safety branch.
>> Our principal concern
is for this behaviour
of mouthing stuff.
Chewing on it, sucking on it
for extended periods of time,
potentially even swallowing it.
>> David: Back in 2011,
the government notices some
companies using cadmium
as an alternative to lead.
>> We identified an emerging
issue of cadmium in children's
jewellery, in items like that.
>> David: So they propose
strict new guidelines.
>> 130 parts per million
we think, so that's
a very low number.
It really means that
you can't add any cadmium
to children's jewellery.
>> David:
But are guidelines enough?
Four years after that
announcement, our tests
show this Aldo bracelet
isn't the only piece with
high levels of cadmium.
Time to share the results with
the girls and their parents.
So have any of you
heard of cadmium?
>>> No.
>> David:
You've heard of cadmium?
>> Very poisonous.
>> David: Very poisonous.
Do you think we found cadmium?
>> I hope not.
I hope not.
>> Let's look at Ardene.
Earrings.
Who bought those?
>> I did.
>> Do you remember them?
The test found cadmium.
>> Geez.
>> David:
These red Ardene earrings,
nearly 3400 times over
the kids' jewellery guidelines.
Who bought this?
>> I did.
>> David: You did?
>> I think I might have, also.
So the test found cadmium in it.
>> Ooh!
>> David: This Ardene 
blue triangle pendant
is 99.6% cadmium.
The highest ever
reported in Canada.
 Aldo.
What do you think?
All good?
>>> No.
>> I don't know anymore!
>> David: All right.
Bracelets.
Who bought this?
>> I think that was me.
>> David: The sparkly crystals
in this Aldo bracelet
test at nearly 15 times
the safe amount of cadmium.
Had you ever thought that this
might be a problem, buying from
a store like Aldo?
>> No.
Because it's Aldo.
It's got the brand behind it
and you're thinking,
they should be watching
what goes into their products.
>> David: There's one more.
[laughing]
Who bought those?
>> I think that was me again.
[laughing]
>> David:
These Aldo bow tie earrings,
nearly 40 times over
the Health Canada guidelines.
>> Oh, wow.
>> Wow is right.
>> David: All the jewellery
from H&M turns out to be safe,
same for the other stores,
but take a look at these
anchor earrings and watermelon
pendant from Ardene, they all
contain high levels of cadmium.
And remember that Aldo bracelet?
Its multicoloured charm,
nearly 80 per cent cadmium.
>> If that was on my wrist and I
was holding a baby and the baby
put its mouth on my wrist,
I wouldn't have thought
twice about that, actually.
>> David: When you guys
go shopping, do you ever
consider something like this?
>>> No.
>> David: And why is that?
>> Because I just assume
that places know what's safe
and what's not.
Like I'm not going to go to
a little tiny place in an alley
and look for jewellery.
[laughing]
But I'm going to go to like
stores and malls or like
well-established stores.
>> Somebody knows about it.
We're not the first people to
find out because it was part
of the manufacturing process.
So clearly we need to
understand what's coming in.
>> David: So how did
toxic cadmium get in
all that jewellery?
The back of the tag
says "made in China,"
so that's where we're heading.
♪ ♪
Our investigation begins here
in the international
trade city of Yiwu.
♪ [upbeat Chinese traditional]
We're meeting someone
who's agreed to be our guide.
>> In China, even if you say
something or you're promised
something, it doesn't
necessarily mean
that you're going to get
what you've asked for.
>> David: Adam Gilbourne's
business, Easy Imex, helps
foreign companies import goods
from China.
>> If jewellery's such
sort of small fry...
He says if you want those goods
to be safe, you have to start
with the right manufacturer.
 Neoglory makes products
for big-name brands.
Today, they're making
jewellery for Guess.
What if you're a buyer
and you put out a contract that
says you can't have cadmium,
is that your guarantee?
>> You need to have a presence
in the manufacturer at all times
during your production run.
To be honest,
that's the only way
that you can
100 per cent guarantee
that you're going to get
the product that you want.
>> David: China has its own
rules about cadmium.
Even stricter than Canada's.
And they apply to all jewellery,
not just children's.
This factory even has its own
lab that tests the raw material
and the finished product
for cadmium.
Do they ever find cadmium
in their raw materials?
[speaking alternate language]
>> Sometimes.
>> David: So they actually
do find cadmium sometimes
in their raw materials?
>> Yes.
>> They catch it
with the lab.
>> Yes.
>> And send it back?
>> Yes, send it back.
>> It's a very good start.
Obviously we came here
and they're already testing
and it seems they're testing
constantly every day.
>> David: And so when we find
jewellery on Canadian shelves
that's way in excess of that,
what does this tell you
about those factories?
>> It tells me that they
certainly don't have
a laboratory and if they have,
they have certainly
not used it or ignored it.
>> David: If the jewellery
didn't come from here,
what kind of factory
could it have come from?
We're led to this
residential back alley.
It's small.
A rented ground floor apartment,
less visible safety precautions,
and some of the work even
happens in the backyard.
He uses cadmium?
>> [speaking alternate language]
>> Yeah, yeah.
>> Yes.
>> And why?
>> Cheap.
>> Cheap.
It's cheaper to use cadmium?
>> Yes.
>> David: So how is it cheap?
The manager tells us
the melting point of cadmium
is lower than zinc.
They can use a lower temperature
to melt it into the mould,
saving on energy costs.
>> The buyers say
we need cadmium.
And why do they say that?
>> So something like this,
is the metal here
just 10 per cent cadmium
and 90 per cent zinc?
>> [speaking alternate language]
>> This is 100 per cent,
it's all cadmium?
As we're talking,
they get a delivery.
A van full of cadmium ready
to be made into jewellery.
We ask the manager
if he's concerned about
the health effects of cadmium
on consumers or his workers.
>> He knows cadmium is
dangerous for people.
Yeah.
>> David: Are you surprised by
what we've just seen and heard?
>> No, I'm not surprised
in the slightest.
He gets the orders
from the trading companies
or from other larger factories
and he basically makes
whatever the trading company
requests he makes.
♪ [upbeat]
>> David: Most of the costume
jewellery imported to Canada
comes from right here in Yiwu.
Often sourced from this massive
wholesale market, where buyers
and retailers hunt for deals.
♪ ♪
So we hunt for answers.
Could we buy jewellery
made with cadmium here?
 marketplace follows the trail.
>> [speaking alternate language]
The number you have dialled
is not in service.
>> David: Searching for answers
from stores you trust.
>> You're on private property.
>> This is your marketplace.
>> David: Because all that
glitters should not be sold.
♪ ♪
Yiwu, China, home to one of
the largest wholesale markets
in the world.
How easy would it be here
to order jewellery made
with toxic cadmium?
[speaking alternate language]
>> This is six RMB.
>> Six RMB right now.
>> We don't want to
have the aluminum,
will be 5.5.
>> So we can get
a little bit off the price.
>> Yes.
>> By putting cadmium in it.
>> Yes.
>> We've been in this market
for not even three minutes
and it's taken us no time at all
to find someone who
will use cadmium instead
of the regular components
if we want to get it cheaper.
It's going to cost us
one yuan more if we want this
free of cadmium.
>> This already had cadmium.
>> This has cadmium.
>> And they said they
don't produce for,
without cadmium.
>> They don't make it
without cadmium.
>> Yes.
>> David: What about that toxic
jewellery we bought back
in Canada at Aldo and Ardene?
We ask around.
[speaking alternate language]
>> Those are a little bit
similar to this.
But we can't find it here.
♪ ♪
So we head to Shanghai.
Our search through shipping
records leads us here.
No sign of the Aldo jewellery
but Ardene, we find
multiple orders shipped
from here in 2015.
We trace one of those orders
to this building.
>> I don't know
if it's the same company.
>> 1502.
>> That's 1502.
But that's a different
company now.
The records show Jingtong
 International Trading Company
shipped fashion jewellery
to Ardene in June.
Just-- yeah, okay,
so almost one year.
>> Yeah, almost one year.
>> David: But we're told
apparently they left a year ago.
Back in Yiwu, records say
another company, Aurielle, sent
necklaces to Ardene last summer.
This is the address?
>> Yeah.
[speaking alternate language]
No, it's just
a normal people's home.
>> David: It's a home.
Not a business,
never dealt with
a Canadian company?
>> No.
>> Okay.
And finally, Qian Huan Jewelery
also sent necklaces to Ardene
in May and June.
Neighbours tell us they closed
down about a month ago.
So we tried calling
the number on the sign.
>> [speaking alternate language]
>> Message.
>> The number you have dialled
is not in service.
Please check the number
and dial again.
>> Okay. There you go.
Not in service.
Locked up here.
No way to trace them.
What does it mean if Aldo 
and Ardene, these companies
that do trade in Canada, that
we find cadmium in jewellery
on their shelves?
>> Quite frankly,
it means they're very sloppy
with what they're doing and
they don't have control over
their supply chain in China.
>> David: Back at home,
we show Health Canada 
some of what we saw.
>> It doesn't seem sufficient
to me to accept somebody's
assertion that this product
is compliant with
the rules in Canada.
That is something that you
as an importer really need
to verify on your own.
>> But I'm left thinking
that not everybody is.
>> That is -- it is the
responsibility of everybody in
the industry to make sure their
products don't pose a danger
to human health and safety.
>> David: So how dangerous is
the jewellery 12-year-old Stella
and her friends bought?
We asked her and her mom
to travel to Montreal
to École Polytechnique.
>> Hi.
>> Hello.
>> David: Dr. Gérald Zagury
is going to help us find out.
There are no known risks
from just touching,
but what could happen if a child
swallows this earring
from Ardene or the charm
from Stella's Aldo bracelet?
These glass beakers mimic the
inside of a toddler's stomach.
How much cadmium
could be absorbed
into their body?
>> What's allowed in drinking
water is six micrograms per day
for a child.
We found 1,300 micrograms.
>> Wow.
>> And that would potentially
end up in the blood
and in the organs.
>> Wow. So all of these
are really dangerous?
>> I would not allow my
daughter, for example, to put
such a sample in her mouth.
♪ [upbeat]
>> David: We share
our findings with Aldo.
They tell us they're taking
steps to remove the jewellery
from stores and are reviewing
their jewellery testing.
 Ardene says it will investigate
and it's not the first time.
 Ardene has had to recall
jewellery five times
for lead or cadmium.
I catch up with Stella and her
mom outside a mall in Montreal.
We asked Ardene to come on
camera and they said "no."
what do you think of that?
>> I wish --
>> Not really surprising.
>> I wish I could say I was
surprised by that, but I'm not.
>> Okay, well, we're not going
to accept "no."
We're going to go
to them right now.
>> Really?
>> Yeah, would you like
to come?
>> Yeah.
>> All right, let's go.
>> Okay.
>> Can you please wait outside?
>> Can you tell us who you --
>> Can you wait outside?
Please, you're on
private property.
>> This is from China, can you
tell me who your supplier is?
This is your marketplace.
>> David: The real deal
on your marketplace.
♪ [upbeat]
Toxic cadmium in children's
jewellery made in China, sold by
Canadian chains like Ardene,
some of the highest levels we
found were in their products.
 Ardene's loss prevention
director Angie Dalios
comes out.
>> You're on private property.
>> David: I understand that.
But you have a necklace here
that is 99.6 per cent cadmium.
>> Do you have an appointment
with someone?
>> We don't have
an appointment.
We've tried and nobody's
been willing to talk to us.
You have something on
your shelves that is toxic.
>> You're going to have
to wait outside.
>> David: Can I ask anything
further about what you're going
to do in relation to this?
>> Can you wait outside, please?
>> David: Can you tell us
who the supplier is?
>> I don't mind waiting outside
while they figure out who's
going to come and speak to us.
>> Wait outside, please.
>> Yeah, we heard you.
We heard you.
I just have to say though,
as a consumer, as a parent --
I don't think you do understand,
actually, so I'd like
to finish my thought
and then I'd go outside.
>> You're on private property.
>> I heard you.
I also am not impressed that
you're not even going to tell us
who's going to come out
and speak to us.
>> David: We wait outside.
Then they come out
to hand us a statement.
Our suppliers have been advised
that the cadmium content in all
our jewellery must respect
a maximum of 130 milligram
per kilogram threshold--
>> I don't care what they tell
their suppliers, I don't care
whether it's the supplier
that's making the mistake
or they're making a mistake,
at the end of the day,
it's this company
that's selling it to my kids.
>> It's their name
on the product.
>> We have sent inspectors out
to speak with Ardene and Aldo
about the test results you had.
We've got to figure out
to what extent these may
actually be being marketed
straight to kids.
Some of the products that you
had identified had --
things seemed kind of
more child-like to me,
the anchors and
the hearts and whatnot.
>> But isn't everything
in a store like that marketed --
>> I don't know if it is.
I don't know how attractive
some of that stuff is to kids
under 15 compared to --
>> David: China makes it
universal for kids and adults.
The Europeans do the same thing,
they combine both kids
and adult jewellery.
Why not just extend
the guidelines to be
regulations for everyone?
>> Yeah, we're very focused
on those products that
we think kids are actually
likely to swallow.
We're not aware of any incidents
relating to cadmium
in jewellery, like costume
jewellery, resulting in injury.
>> As a parent, I don't want
to be the one whose kid
goes to hospital to prompt you
to go and take action.
>> Yeah, and as a regulator,
I'm suggesting that you should
probably try to keep
age-appropriate materials
in the hands of your kids.
>> What if it turned out
that costume jewellery that
your 11-year-olds bought
was 50 or 80 or almost
100 per cent cadmium?
>> Yeah, if I knew that that was
100 per cent cadmium,
I probably would say,
Sophie, hand that over.
>> David: It's been a year
since we first broadcast this
story, and now Health Canada
is moving to finally turn those
cadmium guidelines into law.
Means it will be able to take
swifter action when recalling
products from store shelves.
We catch up with Mike and Miriam
at the University of Toronto.
>> This is a fabulous example
of how great investigative
journalism results in changes.
 marketplace goes in, finds
elevated levels of cadmium
in the marketplace.
The Canadian public
is now aware of this.
 Health Canada has moved.
>> David: And Ardene tells us
it's now making changes, too.
It's pulled all that toxic
jewellery marketplace
identified off their shelves.
And it's going to have
more stringent monitoring
of its supply chain.
>> They're going to be employing
third-party testers,
that's great.
They're upgrading their product
quality standards, and they will
have written compliance
guarantees, and they're
orienting the compliance
guarantees to adults
as well as children.
>> David: Ardene now
acknowledges some of
their adult jewellery may
also appeal to children.
>> Ardene has really responded
to what's happened with
the marketplace investigation.
They're demonstrating
good corporate responsibility,
and that's exactly what
they should be doing,
and that's what they should
have been doing all along.
>> Charlsie:
Next week, on marketplace.
Looks like chicken, tastes
like chicken, but how much
of it is really chicken?
>> They have restructured it
and kind of reformed it.
>> Charlsie: marketplace
fires up the grill.
>> When I make chicken at home,
I don't use anywhere near
the number of ingredients.
>> 48 more ingredients
than I expected.
>> Isn't that
a diabetic question though,
about sugar in chicken?
>> Charlsie:
Putting your favourite fast food
grilled chicken to the test.
>> They shouldn't be able
to call it chicken.
