Half of the items examined in spot checks on the quality of
children's clothes in Guangdong Province failed safety tests, the
provincial Administration of Industry and Commerce revealed on
Monday.
The administration checked 91 batches of clothes at 22
supermarkets in six cities from January to March including
Guangzhou and Shenzhen.
Investigators put the items through eight tests including
examinations for levels of formaldehyde, PH value (to determine
acidity or alkalinity) and the veracity of labels. Only 50.6
percent of the clothes passed all the tests.
The most serious discovery was the presence of a harmful dye
called aromatic amine in about 10 percent of the clothing.
The dye cannot be washed away and has the potential to cause
bladder and urethra cancer if it remains in contact with the skin
for extended periods, a source at the administration said. The
worst case discovered was 10 times above the legal limit. As the
dye has no noticeable smell or particular color ordinary consumers
are unable to identify it.
A total of 32 batches of clothes did not meet the national
standard for PH value which is between PH 4.0 and PH 7.5. Clothes
with higher or lower PH values can damage the skin, the
administration explained.?
Some clothes contained excessive formaldehyde, which can cause
youngsters to suffer bronchitis, insomnia and loss of appetite. It
also lowers natural resistance to diseases.
And 30 batches of clothing were found to have no descriptive
labels explaining what had been used in the manufacture of a
product or they were unqualified.?
"The lower-level administrations will assign investigators to
inspect markets and stores. Anyone who is still selling dangerous
clothes will be fined and all offending items will be confiscated,"
Hu Yanni, an officer of the administration, told China
Daily.
The administration revealed 51 brands of clothes which failed
the tests including some well-known names such as Bettyboop, e.baby
and Mina.
But despite the warnings some potentially dangerous clothes were
still on sale in Guangzhou Tuesday. A number of Bettyboop franchise
stores were operating as usual and salespersons said they didn't
know the details of the case.
"Since well-known brands may also be producing dangerous clothes
I'm very scared and confused about what I should buy for my little
boy," said Lin Yingxia, a 25-year-old mother of a newly-born baby.
"I think I'll choose white colored clothes."
She said the administration should heavily fine guilty
manufacturers and make their names public.
?
Also on Monday the administration carried out spot checks on food
and toys aimed at children. While the most of the food passed the
tests, 37 percent of the toys failed. Toys made from cloth had the
lowest pass rate, just 16.7 percent, but metal toys were found to
be 100 percent good.?
On a national level the State Bureau of Quality and Technical
Supervision recently did similar checks of children's garments
produced by 74 companies in nine provinces and municipalities. They
found 37.8 percent of the products were not up to
standard.?
The bureau advised consumers to purchase children's clothes made
from soft, permeable materials. People should read the clothing
labels carefully before buying.
Experts expressed their concern over the problem. "Children are
the future of our country," said Xiao Bin, a professor at
Guangzhou-based Sun Yat-sen University.
"The producers of children's articles should stop making
dangerous items," he said.? "Parents should be more cautious
when they're purchasing clothes, toys, food or other things for
their children."
(China Daily May 31, 2006)