LOCAL children’s clothes manufacturers are set to start testing their products for DEHP – the cancer causing chemical at the center of a recent food scare in Taiwan.
A new standard on China’s mainland is expected to be issued soon, regulating for the first time that DEHP content in children and babies’ clothes should not exceed 0.1 milligram per kilogram.
In addition, the regulation will limit levels of five types of heavy metal – antimonium, cadmium, chromium, cobalt and nickel – in children and infants’ clothes.
The standard has been drafted and is now awaiting approval from the authorities, according to the National Garments Quality Inspection and Supervision Center.
But officials didn’t say when the new standard will be issued eventually.
Shanghai quality authorities said once the new standard becomes valid, a DEHP test will be included in their regular inspections.
Metersbonwe, a popular domestic garment brand, said it was confident it would meet the new standard.
“We keep improving our own quality standards to make sure no products with DEHP reach the market,” said Zhou Yuxiang, an official with the company.
Meanwhile, some parents are worried about the quality of clothes currently on sale.
“I suspect clothes I bought for my son from online stores contain DEHP and heavy metals, as the government never tested for these items before,” said Zhang Qian, a mother of a two-year-old boy.
Online stores, however, insisted their products were free from harmful chemicals.
Textile experts said DEHP and heavy metals may be found in buttons and dyes.
Recently, DEHP was found to have been illegally used in food additives by some Taiwan companies.
This led to a Chinese mainland ban on thousands of products from Taiwan.
Shanghai Daily