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Aug 15 (Reuters) - Mattel Inc., the world's largest toy company, recalled millions of Chinese-made products on Tuesday due to hazards from small, powerful magnets and lead paint, and warned it may recall more after testing thousands of toys.

Here is an overview of safety scares over China-made products in recent months.

PET FOOD:

-- At least 16 cats and dogs died, and more than 100 pet food brands recalled products in North America in March, after Chinese suppliers were discovered to have used the toxic chemical melamine in pet food wheat gluten and rice protein. China cancelled the export licences of two firms linked to the products in July.

TOOTHPASTE, COUGH SYRUP:

-- Two brands of Chinese toothpaste were banned in the Dominican Republic in May because of fears that they contained the lethal chemical diethylene glycol, which was held responsible for mass poisoning deaths in Panama in May 2006. At least 100 people in Panama were thought to have died after consuming toxic, mislabelled drugs in cough syrups from China.

TYRES:

-- The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration insisted on the recall of as many as 450,000 tyres made by China's second-largest tyre maker, Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Co. Ltd, in late June. It reported that the tyres, used on sport-utility vehicles, vans and trucks, could fail at highway speeds because of an insufficient or missing gum strip that prevents belt separation. The company rebuffed the accusations.

TOYS:

-- The world's largest toymaker, Mattel, recalled more than 18 million made-in-China toys in mid-August because of hazards from small, powerful magnets that can cause injury if swallowed, just two weeks after it recalled 1.5 million toys due to fears about lead paint.

Source: Reuters

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