LG Household & Health Care Withdraws 'Physiogel' Products Produced in Japan Amid Radiation Concerns

[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] LG Household & Health Care has decided to resume production of Physiogel’s ‘Daily Moisture Therapy (DMT) Body Lotion,’ which was previously manufactured in Japan, at a facility in Thailand. The company withdrew production from Japan due to increasing consumer concerns about radiation following recent earthquakes in Japan.

On the 16th, LG Household & Health Care announced, “Although the Physiogel DMT Body Lotion 400ml product is produced to the same global quality standards, reflecting consumer opinions and demands, products manufactured in Japan will no longer be sold domestically from February 9, 2021.”

LG Household & Health Care had been producing and selling the product concurrently in Thailand and Japan since last month, exclusively online, without distribution in offline stores. Following this decision, the product will be produced at a local factory in Thailand and imported domestically.

This decision by LG Household & Health Care comes amid growing customer concerns about radiation from Japan. During the Lunar New Year holiday, a magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck, causing water to overflow at Units 5 and 6 of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, further heightening safety concerns regarding Japan.

Additionally, a boycott of Japanese products has continued, and criticism arose that changing the production country to Japan was against public sentiment, leading to this decision.

Previously, after acquiring the Asian and North American business rights of Physiogel from the global pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), LG Household & Health Care changed the manufacturing country of some products from Thailand to Japan to improve management efficiency.

An LG Household & Health Care official explained, “The Japanese factory is a local business site acquired by LG Household & Health Care’s Japanese subsidiary, producing products for the Japanese domestic market,” adding, “It is a safe production facility certified with ‘ISO 22716,’ ‘GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice for pharmaceuticals),’ and ‘quasi-drug’ certification, which is a higher management grade than cosmetics.”

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