"Warning on Children's Day Doll Gifts"... Harmful Substances Detected at 321 Times the Limit in Some Products

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[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] Harmful substances exceeding safety standards have been detected in role-playing toy dolls sold online.

The Korea Consumer Agency announced on the 3rd that out of 16 human-shaped doll toys distributed on online open markets, 9 products were found to be non-compliant with safety standards after safety verification.

Among the 16 products investigated, phthalate plasticizers (DEHP, DBP), which can cause damage to the liver and other organs, were detected at levels of 0.8% to 32.1% in 9 products, exceeding the safety standard (total 0.1%) by 8 to 321 times. Additionally, cadmium, a human carcinogen, was detected at 127 mg/kg in one product, exceeding the safety standard (75 mg/kg) by 1.7 times.

Phthalate plasticizers can irritate the skin, eyes, and mucous membranes and cause damage to the liver and other organs. Cadmium can cause damage to the kidneys and other organs and is classified as a human carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer.

SF Distribution, Taeseong Trading, Daesung Trading Co., Ltd., Jukebox, Pureun Fancy, and Tblue Co., Ltd., which sold or imported products that did not meet safety standards, responded to the Consumer Agency with voluntary corrective plans such as sales suspension and refunds.

In addition, an investigation into mandatory labeling required to assist in product selection and use found that 4 products were non-compliant with labeling standards due to partial or complete omission of Korean labeling information such as manufacturing date.

Furthermore, toys, which are children's products subject to safety confirmation, must have safety confirmation marks when distributed, but 2 products lacked these safety confirmation marks.

The Consumer Agency requested sales suspension of these products through a regular consultative body of online sales intermediaries to block the distribution of products that do not meet safety standards. They also plan to request the National Institute of Technology and Standards to strengthen safety management and supervision of human-shaped doll toys made of synthetic resin materials.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.