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Kidswear in China to be tested for heavy metals
29 Jun '11
2 min read
The producers of children's clothing in China are gearing up to make their goods free of Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), a chemical that causes cancer and was at the core of a recent food fright in Taiwan.
For the first time, China is soon going to set new standards to regulate the DEHP content in children and infant clothing. The new norm would make it mandatory that DEHP content in children's garments should not exceed 0.1 milligram per kilogram.
The new norms would even regulate the levels of five different kinds of heavy metals – cadmium, nickel, antimonium, chromium and cobalt – in children and baby clothes.
An outline of these norms has already been prepared and an approval from the concerned authorities is being awaited, according to the National Garments Quality Inspection and Supervision Centre.
Although there is no official disclosure as yet about the date on which these norms would actually be issued, but as soon as they become effective, the quality authorities in the country would include a DEHP test in their routine inspections.
Meanwhile, the garment producers are taking this norm seriously and are certain that their products would be able to meet the new standards. They are taking steps to enhance the quality of their goods to ensure that no product with excessive DEHP content reaches the market.
Some parents, however, are expressing concern about the quality of garments that are currently being sold in the market. They suspect considerable presence of DEHP and other heavy metals in the garments that they have already bought for their kids, as DEHP testing was never carried out earlier.
Online stores are insisting that the clothes they sell have no content of any harmful chemicals.
According to textile experts, it is possible that dyes and button may contain DEHP and heavy metals.
Some time back, Taiwanese firms were found to be illegally using DEHP in food additives, because of which China imposed a ban on import of several products from Taiwan.
Editor's note-Harmful chemicals should not be used not only in children and baby wear, but also in all kinds of clothing for men and women, home furnishings, and other fabrics.
For the first time, China is soon going to set new standards to regulate the DEHP content in children and infant clothing. The new norm would make it mandatory that DEHP content in children's garments should not exceed 0.1 milligram per kilogram.
The new norms would even regulate the levels of five different kinds of heavy metals – cadmium, nickel, antimonium, chromium and cobalt – in children and baby clothes.
An outline of these norms has already been prepared and an approval from the concerned authorities is being awaited, according to the National Garments Quality Inspection and Supervision Centre.
Although there is no official disclosure as yet about the date on which these norms would actually be issued, but as soon as they become effective, the quality authorities in the country would include a DEHP test in their routine inspections.
Meanwhile, the garment producers are taking this norm seriously and are certain that their products would be able to meet the new standards. They are taking steps to enhance the quality of their goods to ensure that no product with excessive DEHP content reaches the market.
Some parents, however, are expressing concern about the quality of garments that are currently being sold in the market. They suspect considerable presence of DEHP and other heavy metals in the garments that they have already bought for their kids, as DEHP testing was never carried out earlier.
Online stores are insisting that the clothes they sell have no content of any harmful chemicals.
According to textile experts, it is possible that dyes and button may contain DEHP and heavy metals.
Some time back, Taiwanese firms were found to be illegally using DEHP in food additives, because of which China imposed a ban on import of several products from Taiwan.
Editor's note-Harmful chemicals should not be used not only in children and baby wear, but also in all kinds of clothing for men and women, home furnishings, and other fabrics.
Fibre2fashion News Desk - China
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