On the eve of the new school year Roskachestvo launched a special project dedicated to the quality and safety of school backpacks. There are a lot of variations of this product on the market. Of different shapes, sizes, from a variety of materials - from fabric and leather to plastic. But at the same time, consumers complain that it is difficult to choose a good backpack: for example, backpacks, obviously for children, with beautiful bright drawings, in fact are not suitable for elementary school students either in weight, size, or back stiffness. Claims also arise for products with too narrow or unreliable straps, with a caustic "chemical" smell. 

«To «plant» the child's health, it takes quite a bit – to buy him a bad school satchel. Such an acquisition will primarily affect the back. This means that the musculoskeletal, respiratory, cardiovascular and nervous systems will suffer. Due to a curved back, scoliosis, pinched nerves, problems with blood circulation and breathing are possible.Comments on the expertTatiana Butskaya, founder of the all-Russian movement "Council of Mothers" and the People's award "Parents' Choice", pediatrician, international expert on children's goods. 
 

In order to understand what is really happening on the market, whether consumer claims are justified, Roskachestvo experts anonymously purchased and sent for research a wide variety of backpacks that look like they are intended for elementary school students.

Purchases were made on manufacturers' websites, in large online stores «Ozone», «Auchan». At sellers, these backpacks were positioned as school goods. At the same time, the description in the product cards was quite meager. Neither the weight nor the size of the goods were reported almost anywhere. The cost ranged from 709 to 12,500 rubles per unit of goods. Most of the goods turned out to be Chinese-made, but there were also samples produced by Russia, Germany, Japan and Serbia. For some products, the country of origin could not be determined.

• by weight of the product (too heavy);
• by size;
•  on the form stability of the backrest;
• there are no retroreflective elements (retroreflectors);
• no indication of the user's age in the marking;
• no indication of the manufacturer and country of manufacture;
• no marking in principle;
• no operating and maintenance instructions.

But there were also positive moments. Experts have found that all products are sewn efficiently and accurately, do not fade and do not dye, are resistant to dry and wet friction. All have a comfortable handle and a sufficient number of pockets. All have strong seams, good quality zippers.  

Nevertheless, none of the backpacks studied reached the increased requirements of the Roskachestvo standard. 

Conclusions:

• All the backpacks studied in the framework of the special project turned out to be safe in terms of toxicity and harmful substances, strong enough and reliable.
• Claims have arisen to the labeling. Manufacturers often do not indicate the purpose of backpacks, the age of the child for whom the backpack is designed, or indicate the age incorrectly. So, backpacks, which, judging by the marking, are intended for first-graders, by weight are suitable only for middle school students. 
• In addition, the goods do not meet the requirements of TR CU 007/2011 in weight and size, do not have a solid form-resistant backrest.
• There are no retroreflective elements on the products. 
• Backpacks of some brands are made of moisture-permeable materials, which means that textbooks and notebooks may suffer from rain.

The manufacturers of Dazzle, Samsonite and Belmil informed during the preparation of the study materials that the labels of the studied goods, according to the comments of Roskachestvo, the necessary adjustments will be made. So, the backpack Dazzle will be intended for schoolchildren from 10 years and more. Will change the age in labeling and Samsonite – at the moment, his backpack, judging by the marking, is intended for children from three years old and older, meanwhile, the back of the backpack is soft, which contradicts the requirements of TR CU 007/2011. 

Claims also arose against retail chains that do not pay attention to the reliability of the marking of backpacks, put on sale too heavy or too large models under the guise of satchels and backpacks for school.  

Therefore, the experts of Roskachestvo have developedстандарт for organizations that purchase and sell backpacks at retail. This will help reduce the risk of buyers purchasing products of poor quality or unsuitable for elementary school students. 

Read more on the website Roskachestvo.

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