Gov’t to conduct nationwide inspection of chemical products

SEOUL, Nov. 29 (Yonhap) — The South Korean government said Tuesday it will carry out a nationwide inspection of every consumer chemical product sold on the market, following safety concerns over usage.

The Ministry of Environment said it plans to complete the review by June next year, as part of its efforts to enhance safety control over products that can be hazardous to consumers.

Air fresheners, detergents and antifreeze are some of the items that will be checked in the nationwide screening process, the ministry said.

The government will immediately weed out products with high toxicity and reveal the names of such products to the public, it said.

The ministry also said it will enact a new law, expanding the number of chemicals under government control from the current 72 to 1,300 from 2019 onwards.

Advertising phrases such as “non-toxic” or “eco-friendly” that could mislead consumers will be prohibited by law.

The announcement followed the humidifier disinfectant case, one of the worst scandals involving consumer products using chemicals in the country. It came to light after four pregnant women died of lung problems for unknown reason in 2011.

A government-led investigation later confirmed a connection between scores of people who died of lung problems and the chemicals used to clean household humidifiers.

A group of victims of toxic humidifier sterilizers and civic activists tramples products made by the local unit of Britain’s Reckitt Benckiser at a press conference in western Seoul on April 28, 2016, calling for citizens to join their boycott.