SEOUL, May 02 (AJU PRESS) - Seoul City has discovered excessive levels of harmful substances, including lead and banned chemicals, in children’s toys and stationery items sold on Chinese e-commerce platforms including Aliexpress, officials said Thursday.
Korean law requires sellers and importers of children's products to obtain safety certification, imposing penalties for violating the rule. However, the law does not apply to products purchased directly from overseas online retailers.
During a recent safety inspection, two children's clay products sold through Aliexpress were found to contain banned substances chloromethylisothiazolinone (CMIT) and methylisothiazolinone (MIT), known to cause skin, respiratory, and eye irritation. These substances were previously used in humidifier disinfectants and linked to a public health crisis in South Korea.
The inspection also revealed excessive levels of fluorine in a 36-piece clay set and a toy product with 158 times more lead than the safety standard. Additionally, a popular 12-color pencil set sold on Aliexpress contained 10 pencils with excessive barium, a highly toxic substance banned for use in children's products in many countries.
This safety inspection highlights the risks of jikgoo (direct buying), a popular trend among Korean consumers seeking affordable products on foreign e-commerce platforms. According to official data, Korean spending on jikgoo reached a record-high 6.7 trillion won, with over 50% of purchases made on Chinese platforms like Aliexpress and Temu.
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
