Crumbling Baby Bottle Sterilizers... Orte and Sobemom to Conduct Full Voluntary Recall

Two Types of Baby Bottle Sterilizers Under Full Voluntary Recall Starting August 28
Free Repairs for All Products Except Those Eligible for Refund or Exchange
Korea Consumer Agency: "Additional Market Product Investigations Planned"

Recently, as reports of internal component breakage in certain baby bottle sterilizer products have spread via social networking services (SNS), the Korea Consumer Agency announced on August 28 that it will conduct a full voluntary recall of two types of baby bottle sterilizers.

The Korea Consumer Agency and the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards will begin a full voluntary recall from today for two types of baby bottle sterilizers where internal component breakage may pose safety risks. The products subject to recall are: ▲Sambuja's "Orte" brand ZMW-STHB03 (OBC-80A) and ▲Jade & International's "Sobemom" brand ZMW-STHB01 (SBM-DW01).

Yonhap News

An investigation into cases of internal plastic component breakage in baby bottle sterilizers found that certain parts may break due to continuous exposure to high temperature and humidity, as well as vibration, during the washing or drying process.

Although these products were sold after passing safety inspections, it was confirmed that the issue was caused by defective quality in some components. To proactively prevent potential safety hazards, the two companies have decided to recall all 30,403 units sold.

The Korea Consumer Agency has recommended refunds or exchanges for products manufactured during the period when production defects were recognized. For all other products, free repairs (replacement parts) have been advised. Accordingly, refunds or exchanges are available for Orte products manufactured between December of last year and February of this year. For Sobemom products, refunds or exchanges are available for those manufactured between December of last year and March of this year. Free repairs are available for all other products not eligible for refund or exchange.

The Korea Consumer Agency will continue to monitor products eligible for free repair under this recall for any recurring defects in the same components or other potential safety concerns. In addition, considering the high level of consumer interest in baby bottle sterilizers, the agency plans to investigate whether microplastics are detected in baby bottle sterilizers currently on the market and will publicly announce the results.

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