A meeting convened by the Vermont Chamber of Commerce with Commissioner Peter A. Feldman of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) took place on December 1 at the South Burlington Public Library. Vermont business leaders connected with the Commissioner to learn more about their value as a resource to manufacturers, distributors, and retailers. The meeting also covered approaches to product safety, industry trends and best practices, standards, and opportunities to advance consumer safety together.

“There is only so much of this job I can do from behind my desk in Washington. It’s important to get out to meet industry and other stakeholders where they are, so we can all better understand each other,” stated Commissioner Feldman. “I am grateful to Senator Peter Welch and his staff for connecting me with the Vermont Chamber of Commerce to convene this meeting, and for the opportunity to demystify CPSC.”

“At the Vermont Chamber, we pride ourselves on our track record of connecting businesses with innovative and impactful resources to help them succeed,” stated Chris Carrigan, Vice President of Business Development for the Vermont Chamber. “Today’s event was an invaluable opportunity to speak directly with the federal regulatory body that collaborates with businesses to ensure safety standards of consumer products and foster a safe marketplace that ultimately benefits both businesses and consumers.”

Following the listening session, businesses had an opportunity to ask questions on how products get flagged, the protocol of recalls, third-party testing for quality assurance, what the potential impact of artificial intelligence and machine learning will be on product safety, the challenges of e-commerce, and how best to work with the Commission going forward.

Business leaders in attendance included Hillary Burrows of Autumn Harp, Gwen Pakalo Hart of the Center for Women and Enterprise, Mike Rainville of Maple Landmark, Jeffrey Paquet and Ted Cantin of Mobile Medical International Corp., Jacob Freedman of Treeline Terrains, Susan Murray of U.S. Commercial Service, Matthew Mole of Vermont Teddy Bear, and Ashley Lipton of the Vermont Agency of Commerce, Department of Economic Development, as well as Fauna Hurley of Senator Peter Welch’s office.