About Me

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No Fixed Abode, Home Counties, United Kingdom
I’m a 60-year-old Aspergic gardening CAD-Monkey. Sardonic, cynical and with the political leanings of a social reformer, I’m also a toy and model figure collector, particularly interested in the history of plastics and plastic toys. Other interests are history, current affairs, modern art, and architecture, gardening and natural history. I love plain chocolate, fireworks and trees, but I don’t hug them, I do hug kittens. I hate ignorance, when it can be avoided, so I hate the 'educational' establishment and pity the millions they’ve failed with teaching-to-test and rote 'learning' and I hate the short-sighted stupidity of the entire ruling/industrial elite, with their planet destroying fascism and added “buy-one-get-one-free”. Likewise, I also have no time for fools and little time for the false crap we're all supposed to pretend we haven't noticed, or the games we're supposed to play. I will 'bite the hand that feeds', to remind it why it feeds.

Monday, February 6, 2017

C is for Contribution Fortnight - XI - Not Kinder Star Wars Chocolate Eggs from Brian


Here's a funny thing - not the subject of today's post; that's very serious, the destruction of whole planets long, long ago, far, far away! - But that several sources have claimed that Kinder eggs are 'banned', 'illegal' or 'not allowed' in the USA . . . yet these have turned-up in New York?

Main branding is to Disney 'Distributed by Galerie' from Hebron, Kentucky with a Kentucky logo hidden-away on the consumer data label, but both the manufacture of the chocolate and the packaging are attributed to Mexico, while we know Disney use various contract-manufacturers in China for their toy products.

Now it seems clear that the FDA do act against the import of Kinder and have arrested people for bringing them into the country, so how have these got 'under the radar'? It could of course - upon finding these - be seen as a bit of protectionism, along the lines of 'put Kinder off and we'll sort out a domestic product (in Mexico!) that will exploit the same market niche. How long the Mexico connection will last is under the new administration is anyone's guess, but 'not long' would appear to be the writing on the wall!

And I'm not joking, nor am I 'having a go' at my American readers - if there's one other western democracy in equal trouble it's bloody Britain! However, it's a fact that Donald 'fascist loon' Trump (that IS designed to upset some people!) is telling US companies (like Galerie/Kentucky (?) and/or Disney?) to move production back to the US, but you can't make novelties like this to a competitive retail price with profit margin, on US wage-rates . . . unless you use 'illegal's - but they all have to go back, oh yes folks, all going back!

The Kinder-like item in a Kinder-clone capsule; it looks like it could be used as a pencil-top, although it's not marketed as such. Torso-only is a bit outside the Blog's remit (like; as if  the Blog's got ANY remit!), but I know a lot of figure painters prefer a torso to a full figure and while these are on the small side they could nevertheless be painted-up to a higher standard and would look good on a shelf together.

They also look like those vinyl-record turntable, centre-point novelties you used to get back in the 1950's like the mop-headed Beatles or Banania's French pop-stars; spinning round like the demented inmates of some musical hell, or indeed, just like that pencil-top/eraser of the Batman; which Brian sent us - a while back! Thanks Brian!

3 comments:

Jan Ferris said...

More capsule toys, how deliciously delightful!

Terranova47 said...

While Kinder eggs contain the toy in it's container, these 'Mexican' imports pack the plastic container in the larger box separately. The ban on Kinder eggs supposedly is due to the fear children will bite the egg and swallow the contents.

The premise of course is that US kids are less bright than kids in the rest of the world. NO COMMENT.

On US eBay, Kinder eggs are available in bulk from India?

Hugh Walter said...

Jan - Smine-not-yours! Actually it's his....

H!!

Terranova - I figured as much from the box, but it still smacks of dodgyness! India? Have they got clay figurines in them!!

H