Ali·Temu Children's Products, Bought for Cheap... Contain Harmful and Carcinogenic Substances 300 Times Over the Standard

Inspection of Children's Products on Chinese Direct Purchase Platforms
Some Products Contain Harmful and Carcinogenic Substances Up to 300 Times the Standard
Seoul City Accelerates 'Consumer Safety Assurance Measures' and Other Initiatives

The Seoul Metropolitan Government is strengthening safety management measures for overseas direct purchase products. This action comes in response to the influx of harmful substances found in products sold on overseas online shopping platforms, including Chinese ones. Seoul has selected product categories with high demand among items sold on major platforms and has initiated additional safety inspections.

According to Seoul on the 26th, the city will continuously disclose information on inspection items, sellers, and detected harmful substances from Chinese shopping platforms such as AliExpress and Temu on the Seoul city website. In particular, the scope of inspections will be expanded to various overseas platforms beyond AliExpress and Temu.

The day before, Seoul announced that analysis of the components of 22 children's products sold on AliExpress and Temu revealed harmful and carcinogenic substances exceeding the standard by up to 300 times in 11 products.

Inspection results showed that among 16 shoe decorations (Jibbitz) used to decorate children's slippers and sneakers, 7 contained phthalate plasticizers (DEHP, DBP) exceeding the standard by up to 348 times. Some products also contained lead levels up to 33 times the standard. Phthalate plasticizers are classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer as "possibly carcinogenic to humans." They cause toxicity to reproductive organs and the liver, affecting precocious puberty, infertility, and reduced sperm count. Phthalate plasticizers were also detected at about 324 times the standard in children's car sunshades. Lead content in some parts of the products also exceeded the standard. Additionally, parts were found to break into pieces with little force, posing risks of ingestion and choking.

Large amounts of harmful substances were also identified in inspections conducted earlier this month. A safety investigation of 31 products sold on AliExpress last month found that 8 products significantly exceeded allowable limits or had deficiencies in physical safety such as durability.

In children's leather bags, 4 out of 7 types of phthalate plasticizers (DEHP, DBP, DINP, DIBP) were detected, with the total amount of plasticizers reaching 56 times the standard. DEHP was found at 35 times the standard in children's pencils, and at 33 times the standard in children's water play products (tubes). The children's tubes were found to have a thickness of 0.19 mm, thinner than the standard 0.25 mm, raising additional concerns about breakage and drowning risks due to durability issues, the city added.

Seoul is also accelerating its previously announced "Consumer Safety Assurance Measures for Overseas Online Platforms." It is intensively conducting harmfulness investigations of products sold on overseas online shopping malls and promoting consumer damage relief measures. In particular, the "Consumer Damage Dedicated Reporting Center" for overseas direct purchase products has begun full operation. Seoul plans to minimize damage by having dedicated personnel promptly provide consultation and relief measures for damage situations and, if necessary, establish a cooperative system with central agencies such as the Korea Consumer Agency.

Additionally, the city will select items expected to have high demand monthly and finalize actual inspection items through consultation with three specialized testing institutions. The selected items will be inspected and the results disclosed. The scope of inspections will be expanded to various overseas platforms with many domestic users beyond China to minimize safety blind spots for Seoul citizens. A Seoul city official stated, "We plan to expand safety inspections of products flooding overseas platforms and build a more meticulous monitoring system."