Quaker Halts Sales Of Cap'n Crunch Cereal Containing "Popper" Promotional Toy Because Of Eye Injuries

PRODUCT: "Popper" promotional toy in Quaker's Cap'n Crunch, Crunchberries and Peanut Butter Crunch cereals. The "popper" toy is packed in 8.3 million cereal packages distributed nationwide.

PROBLEM: Thirty-six injuries, such as bruised or bloodshot eyes, when children used the toy by applying it to the face or eye, which creates suction.

WHAT TO DO: Discard the "popper" toy immediately. The cereal can still be eaten.

WASHINGTON, DC -- The Quaker Oats Company, in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), voluntarily stopped the sale of 15 and 16-ounce packages of Cap'n Crunch, Crunchberries and Peanut Butter Crunch cereals containing a "popper" toy as a premium following reports of eye injuries to children.

The company received 36 reports in recent days involving injuries to children, such as bruised or bloodshot eyes. In all cases, children used the toy in a manner not intended by applying it to the face or eye, which creates suction. The company reported these incidents to CPSC.

Consumers who purchased Cap'n Crunch cereal containing the "popper" premium should discard the toy as a safety precaution. Consumers with questions may contact Quaker Oats at 1-800-258-5400.

The "popper" is a two-inch half-sphere which gets its name by "popping" back to its original shape after being inverted and placed on a flat surface.

The "popper" premium was packed in 8.3 million boxes of Cap'n Crunch, of which approximately 6.8 million are in customer warehouses, on store shelves or in consumers' homes. The company informed retailers nationwide to remove from store shelves packages containing the "popper" premium.

A company spokesman said that the cereal itself is safe to eat. Media inquiries for Quaker Oats can be directed to Ronald Bottrell at 312-222-7388.