Business Briefing

REGIONAL NEWS

Check toys, household items for toxic substances for free

In a bid to jump-start its business, a family-owned startup in Bellevue is offering free testing of toys and other household items for toxic substances this weekend.

Essco Safety Check, run by brothers Seth and Arin Goldberg, is scheduled to use its $35,000 hand-held X-ray fluorescence device at several Puget Sound-area libraries and schools. The testing is sponsored by Darcy Burner, a Democrat challenging incumbent Dave Reichert, R-Wash., in the 8th Congressional District race.

Seth Goldberg, 36, said the company tests homes for scores of toxic substances, including arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury, charging between $250 and $350.

Businesses can test their facilities at a daily rate to be negotiated.

The brothers got the idea for the business about 10 weeks ago when news stories began appearing about lead in toys, Goldberg said. He said he knows of no other local companies doing in-house testing.

Locations for the free testing can be found at essco-safetycheck.com.

Lawsuit says Costco's milk wrongly labeled as organic

Costco Wholesale Corp. has been sued by an Illinois resident who claims the largest U.S. warehouse retailer sells milk it labels as organic, even though it comes from cows raised in conventional dairies.

There's nothing organic about Costco milk marketed under the Kirkland and Wilcox brands, lawyers for Channing Hesse said in a suit filed Dec. 10 in Seattle federal court.

The milk comes from a dairy that's violated several organic certification rules imposed by the Food and Drug Administration, according to the complaint.

Costco spokesman Robert Nelson didn't reply to phone messages seeking comment.

NATIONAL NEWS

Use of plastic PVC will be phased out at Sears, Kmart

Sears Holdings Corp. said Wednesday that it will move to phase out the use of the plastic PVC in packaging and merchandise at its Sears and Kmart stores, joining other retailers in targeting the plastic because of health and environmental concerns.

The company said it has adopted a policy aimed at identifying more sustainable choices because of potential risks tied to the manufacture, use and disposal of polyvinyl chloride, known more commonly as PVC or vinyl. Sears did not mention a timetable for the phaseout.

PVC plastic is used in a range of products that include clothing and upholstery, vinyl siding, hoses, pipes and building materials.

Financial services giants warn of much lower fourth quarter

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- More troubling news erupted from the financial services sector Wednesday as Wachovia, PNC and Bank of America warned of bigger-than-expected write-downs and hinted that fourth-quarter results could be a disappointment.

Wachovia Corp. doubled its estimate of loan loss provisions to about $1 billion for the fourth quarter, and the chief executive of crosstown rival Bank of America Corp. pointed to higher write-downs and said he expects current credit market turbulence to extend into 2008.

A third major bank, PNC Financial Services Group Inc., said the money it will set aside to cover bad loans for the last three months of the year will be more than twice as large as in the third quarter.

SHIPPING NEWS

Vessels due Thursday at the Port of Seattle, according to the Marine Exchange of Puget Sound, include APL Austria from Yokohama, Japan, at Terminal 5-North; Pantazis L from Lanshan, China, at anchor. Due Friday: Audax from Ulsan, South Korea, at anchor; Kobe Express from Tokyo at Terminal 18-4; Mol Prosperity from Los Angeles at Terminal 5-South; Wanhe from Busan, South Korea, at Terminal 37.