Tests reveal foreign brands' quality flaws
2010-03-17 08:56:16Source:Global TimesAuthor:
International brand-name products, once hailed in China for their high standards, were under the spotlight Monday, World Consumer Rights Day.
Results from a two-month long sample quality inspection by the Zhejiang Administration of Industry and Commerce (ZJAIC) showed imported clothes produced by 30 internationally recognized brands from 11 countries and regions, including Versace of Italy and Hermes of France, were below regulation standards.
A total of 48 out of 85 batches of clothes were faulty, with just 43.5 percent meeting the standard.
The ZJAIC's inspection showed that some of these world-famous brands have issues with pH values, formaldehyde content, fiber content, color fastness and marking, authorities told the Global Times.
Among the samples, Versus jeans, Zara trousers, Smalto trousers, and Hugo Boss trousers were found to have problems with color fastness; Versus jeans and Versace trousers had problems with low fiber content; Verri jeans contained excessive formaldehyde and Daniel Hechter and Hugo Boss trousers did not meet the national standard pH value, which is between pH 4.0 and pH 7.5.
Clothes with higher or lower pH values or poor color fastness can damage human skin.
ZJAIC has ordered all substandard products to be withdrawn from the market and removed from shelves, and has filed lawsuits against those who sell them.
The prices of the products in question vary from several thousand to even tens of thousands yuan with Hermes trousers valued at around 7,000 yuan ($1,025).
Ye Jianhua, spokesman for ZJAIC, told the Global Times that the campaign to examine foreign brands was prompted by a rising number of consumer complaints about foreign products.
In 2009, 3,346 complaints about garments were lodged in Zhejiang Province, an affluent coastal city where foreign brands thrive. More than 600 of those complaints involved foreign brands.
"Through random inspection, we intend to warn consumers about blindly trusting foreign brands, which have many problems," he said.
Domestically-made goods are often considered by the Chinese as cheap and low-end. Consumers trust international name brands, not only for the quality, but also for the status the product may suggest.
A technician surnamed Li at Shanghai Institute of Fiber Inspection told the Global Times that the inspection was a regular one conducted in accordance with the Chinese safety and technical specifications for textile products.
However, he said, there is a possibility that problems with foreign brands were discovered because "China's test specifications are different from foreign ones."
In recent years famous brands, especially those popular in European markets, have failed China's quality-control inspections. There were no quality inspection standards for textiles and clothing until 2005 when the National General Safety Technical Code for Textile Products was issued.
Ye said it is common for discrepancies between national textile standards and foreign standards. Ye said Chinese products receive equally strict or stricter inspections abroad, and even without flaws, may be casualties of trade protectionism.
"We want foreign brands to know we will conduct an equal level of monitoring on foreign products, and not just give the green light as we did in the past," he said.
Results from a two-month long sample quality inspection by the Zhejiang Administration of Industry and Commerce (ZJAIC) showed imported clothes produced by 30 internationally recognized brands from 11 countries and regions, including Versace of Italy and Hermes of France, were below regulation standards.
A total of 48 out of 85 batches of clothes were faulty, with just 43.5 percent meeting the standard.
The ZJAIC's inspection showed that some of these world-famous brands have issues with pH values, formaldehyde content, fiber content, color fastness and marking, authorities told the Global Times.
Among the samples, Versus jeans, Zara trousers, Smalto trousers, and Hugo Boss trousers were found to have problems with color fastness; Versus jeans and Versace trousers had problems with low fiber content; Verri jeans contained excessive formaldehyde and Daniel Hechter and Hugo Boss trousers did not meet the national standard pH value, which is between pH 4.0 and pH 7.5.
Clothes with higher or lower pH values or poor color fastness can damage human skin.
ZJAIC has ordered all substandard products to be withdrawn from the market and removed from shelves, and has filed lawsuits against those who sell them.
The prices of the products in question vary from several thousand to even tens of thousands yuan with Hermes trousers valued at around 7,000 yuan ($1,025).
Ye Jianhua, spokesman for ZJAIC, told the Global Times that the campaign to examine foreign brands was prompted by a rising number of consumer complaints about foreign products.
In 2009, 3,346 complaints about garments were lodged in Zhejiang Province, an affluent coastal city where foreign brands thrive. More than 600 of those complaints involved foreign brands.
"Through random inspection, we intend to warn consumers about blindly trusting foreign brands, which have many problems," he said.
Domestically-made goods are often considered by the Chinese as cheap and low-end. Consumers trust international name brands, not only for the quality, but also for the status the product may suggest.
A technician surnamed Li at Shanghai Institute of Fiber Inspection told the Global Times that the inspection was a regular one conducted in accordance with the Chinese safety and technical specifications for textile products.
However, he said, there is a possibility that problems with foreign brands were discovered because "China's test specifications are different from foreign ones."
In recent years famous brands, especially those popular in European markets, have failed China's quality-control inspections. There were no quality inspection standards for textiles and clothing until 2005 when the National General Safety Technical Code for Textile Products was issued.
Ye said it is common for discrepancies between national textile standards and foreign standards. Ye said Chinese products receive equally strict or stricter inspections abroad, and even without flaws, may be casualties of trade protectionism.
"We want foreign brands to know we will conduct an equal level of monitoring on foreign products, and not just give the green light as we did in the past," he said.
