Fair Trade Commission Chairman urges water purifier and hygiene product companies to "Ensure world-class safety like K-Quarantine"

CEO Meeting of 19 Water Purifier and Hygiene Product Companies Held on the 14th
Listening to Voluntary Regulation and Win-Win Cooperation Activities for Proactive Consumer Safety Assurance

Jongwook Cho, Chairman of the Fair Trade Commission. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] On the 14th, Cho Sung-wook, Chairman of the Korea Fair Trade Commission, held a meeting with the CEOs of 19 companies belonging to the 'Regular Business Council' for water purifiers and hygiene products operated by the Korea Consumer Agency.

Chairman Cho listened to the participating companies' efforts to reduce hazards in the water purifier and hygiene product sectors, their contributions related to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), and the difficulties they face.

At the meeting, Chairman Cho urged, "Just as 'K-Quarantine' has become the global standard, I hope that world-class consumer safety can be secured in the water purifier and hygiene product sectors as well."

He emphasized that both the government and the private sector must strive to proactively ensure consumer safety.

He mentioned that business operators' efforts must precede specific damage prevention measures that consider the characteristics of products and services in each field.

He also expressed gratitude to the participating companies. They have been reducing product hazards through manufacturing process and service improvement activities, as well as producing content for consumer education and providing safety information.

He highly praised the special services provided to consumers in the Daegu region in response to COVID-19.

The companies extended rental service periods for Daegu consumers and provided sterilization and disinfection services for rental products and surrounding environments during visits.

Additionally, they provided safety information related to masks and hand sanitizers and worked to stabilize mask supply among affiliated business operators.

The companies increased equipment and production personnel to boost mask production. They shortened payment terms for partner companies to secure raw materials for masks, froze prices to stabilize mask costs, and donated masks.

The participating companies presented their voluntary efforts and activities to proactively secure consumer safety in the water purifier and hygiene product sectors.

They reported that by operating a target management system to reduce foreign substances and odors in water purifiers, complaints received by the Consumer Agency have decreased by more than half over three years, from 2,571 cases in 2016 to 1,069 cases last year.

They also stated that consumer complaints about hygiene products decreased by 15.7% compared to the previous year through process improvements and voluntary monitoring.

The Regular Business Council held workshops to strengthen safety management capabilities for small and medium-sized enterprises, transferring large companies' safety management know-how to 147 SMEs in the fields of household chemical products, wet wipes, and cosmetics, among other win-win cooperation activities.

The Consumer Agency announced the 'Living Quarantine Autonomous Implementation Guidelines' applicable to business operators belonging to the Regular Business Council even after transitioning to the 'Living Quarantine System' through a presentation titled 'Consumer Safety Measures Related to COVID-19.'

The implementation guidelines include compliance requirements for facility management such as business sites and service centers, as well as customer-facing employees including those conducting door-to-door sales.

The Consumer Agency also stated that it will prepare detailed guidelines according to the characteristics of each sector in the future.

Chairman Cho said, "Consumer safety is a fundamental value that cannot be compromised," and urged, "Please strive to secure world-class consumer safety in the water purifier and hygiene product sectors as well."

He promised, "The Fair Trade Commission will also provide multifaceted support in terms of budget, systems, and publicity to ensure that business operators' voluntary legal compliance and consumer-centered management are established."

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