Newell Brands has announced the recall of more than two million of their defective Calphalon brand knives after learning that thousands have been breaking during use, which has allegedly caused the injury of 27 consumers. Another 7,100 knives were sold and recalled in Canada. The cookware seller told U.S. authorities that the handles on some of their knives can break off, leaving the blade exposed. Although the injuries were not reported to be life threatening and no extremities were lost, several owners of the faulty Calphalon cutlery required trips to the ER to stitch together their open wounds. The knives were manufactured in China then imported and distributed by Calphalon, which is located in Atlanta, Georgia.
According to reports, Calphalon notified the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) that the line of recalled “Contemporary Cutlery” products were manufactured from August 2008 to March 2016. The knives were sold at nationwide retailers including Kohl’s, Macy’s, and J.C. Penney. The recalled Calphalon products were also sold online at Amazon.com and Calphalon.com. The knives in question, including the carving, chef, paring, santoku, and utility, were sold over an eight-year period as single knives for around $25 and as part of block sets for about $300. Thirteen models are affected in the recall (see link below to check if your knife has been recalled).
In December 2016 Newell Brands recalled 31,000 of their Yankee Candle products over defective glass jars that could crack, causing a laceration threat and a risk of fire. Newell also recalled more than 330,000 Calphalon pizza wheel cutters in September 2015 because, like their recalled knives, the handle could detach during use, which led to six finger lacerations. The pizza wheels were sold from January 2006 to August 2015 for around $15. In October 2013 Newell Brands also recalled more than 22,000 blenders over concerns that the blade could break during use, evoking memories of Cuisinart’s December 2016 recall of eight million food processors for the same reason.
Calphalon stated to the CPSC that they will be providing affected customers with a free replacement knife once the defective blade is returned to the company. Consumers have been instructed to verify that their knife/knives are part of the recalled lot before requesting a return kit. Owners of a recalled knife can expect to wait four to six weeks before receiving their replacement. The company is not offering a monetary refund for the knives as they did for their pizza wheel recall. They are also not offering the owners of a defective knife a free “Nonstick Panini Pan” as they did for the owners of their recalled blenders in 2013.
To contact Calphalon call: (800) 809-7267
To check if your Calphalon knife has been recalled see: https://pages.s7.exacttarget.com/2017CalphalonContemporaryRecall/
To read more about Calphalon recalls see: http://www.calphalon.com/en-US/recall