[Exclusive] Five Years Since the Radon Bed Incident... Certification Loopholes Run Rampant

Some furniture companies have been found to use deceptive tactics while measuring the safety of radon, a Group 1 carcinogen, and promoting it to consumers. This year marks the fifth anniversary of the so-called "Radon Bed Incident," which caused consumer anxiety after large amounts of radon were detected in bed mattresses. However, criticism is growing that the industry's safety awareness is declining, as the number of companies obtaining official safety certifications continues to decrease.

Promoting Test Reports as 'Safety Certification'... Increasing Consumer Confusion

Radon mattresses are piled up at the Dangjin Port yard in Dangjin-si, Chungnam.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Last month, Slowbed, the sleep brand of the Persys Group, launched a new topper mattress product called "Allround," which can be pushed or folded. According to the product information on the shopping mall linked with Naver Shopping, the certification section states "Radon Safety Certification." While existing Slowbed products such as the Midnight mattress do not have this label, some new products are being promoted as having received radon safety certification.

The official radon safety certification issuing body in South Korea is the Korea Standards Association (KSA), a KS certification agency and a public-related organization under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Since the radon incident, KSA has publicly disclosed companies that have received radon safety certification on its official website at consumers' request. As of the 14th, only two mattress companies, Simmons and Sealy, have obtained radon safety certification (product-based), and Slowbed was not on the list. Simmons holds certification for all products, while Sealy has certification for some items.

It was confirmed that Slowbed measured radon levels through a private radon testing company, Company H, not KSA. However, this is not an official certification guaranteed by the government but a simple "test report" indicating that radon levels are below the safety standard of 148 Bq/L (becquerels). Experts commonly agree that, unlike KSA's radon inspection, which takes about two months including measurement and on-site audits, this method is cheaper and less professional, making the reliability of the inspection questionable.

Slowbed's Slowbed Topper Mattress Allround Comfort, released on the 7th of last month.

The leading authority on radon research in South Korea is Dr. Seung-Yeon Cho, director of the Radon Safety Center at Yonsei University (Department of Environmental Engineering). Dr. Cho has studied radon for 30 years at the International Atomic Energy Agency, Ministry of Environment, and National Forensic Service, publishing over 150 papers and reports. He stated, "There is a significant difference between official certification from quasi-governmental agencies and unofficial test reports from private companies in terms of inspection methods and post-management." He explained that some companies bring products with low radon levels only during inspections but sell products made from different materials in stores, whereas KSA conducts on-site audits in addition to private inspections for certification. He added, "Test reports cost about half as much as KSA certification, so many companies have recently switched. However, promoting these as if they have received radon safety certification is deceiving consumers."

KSA expressed frustration that Slowbed has not complied with their request to correct the labeling for over a month. A KSA official said, "Slowbed promised last month to revise the radon safety certification labeling, but no action has been taken. Although we do not have legal authority to enforce this, we are discussing how to respond in case such situations increase in the future."

After Asia Economy began its investigation, Slowbed revised all radon safety certification wording on the afternoon of the 14th. A Slowbed representative explained, "We discussed with KSA and have corrected all expressions of radon safety certification on our official site. Regarding Naver Shopping, since the sales channels select items by clicking rather than directly entering content, we completed all corrections there the day before."

Detailed information of the new topper mattress product 'Allround' entered by Slowbed on the product detail page within Naver Shopping. From the release of the new product on the 7th of last month until the morning of the 14th, it was entered as 'Radon Safety Certification,' but it was corrected once the investigation began.

Incentives Needed to Encourage Nationally Accredited Certification

Many other furniture and mattress companies also displayed test reports obtained from domestic private companies or overseas institutions rather than KSA certification. However, most only used promotional phrases such as "radon-free" or "radon levels below standard" without specifying which certification they had obtained. This contrasts with the early days of the radon incident when companies competed to obtain and actively promote KSA radon safety certification.

Ace Bed, the top mattress seller in South Korea, was the first in the mattress industry to obtain KSA radon safety certification in 2019, the year after the radon incident, but gave up renewing it in 2021. They cited that additional inspections were unnecessary because the mattress materials and fillings remained the same. An industry insider said, "Costs vary depending on product types and sizes, but typically, the KSA on-site audit fee per mattress is 2 million KRW, and renewal is required annually. Maintaining other environmental certifications is already challenging, and obtaining new certification for new products is burdensome." When renewing KSA radon safety certification, the application fee (500,000 KRW) is waived, but the on-site audit fee is discounted to 1.5 million KRW. Both new and renewal certifications require separate measurement inspection fees per product.

Currently, there is no legal basis to sanction companies if their products exceed radon standards or lack certification, as compliance with radon standards is recommended but not mandatory. In this situation, it is pointed out that voluntary participation from the industry should be encouraged. Dr. Cho said, "Even in advanced countries, recommendations are more common than mandates, but companies tend to obtain nationally accredited certification more than private ones." He added, "Companies must remember that failing to disclose certification information clearly will ultimately lose consumer trust. The government should improve the system by providing incentives or simplifying costs and procedures for companies that perform well in certification."