China again heads EU's dangerous products list

(BRUSSELS) - EU nations issued more safety alerts on consumer products than ever last year, with Chinese products again accounting for most of the potentially dangerous items, a European Commission report showed Thursday.

The biggest problems posed were from dangerous chemicals, injuries, choking, electric shocks and strangulation, in that order, with children's toys at the top of the danger list.

The number of dangerous consumer products notified through the EU's rapid alert system (RAPEX) rose by seven percent in 2009, extending an upward trend which has continued unabated since statistics were first collected from member states in 2004.

China increased its record as the country where most of those notified products originated last year, alone accounting for 60 percent of the 1993 cases in question, up slightly from 59 percent in 2008.

Toys, clothing, textiles and motor vehicles topped the danger list, between them accounting for 60 percent of the alerts issued last year.

Electrical appliances were fourth on the list.

A separate EU market surveillance exercise, covering 13 countries, showed that 20 percent of toys on the European market did not comply with safety requirements.

The annual report by the EU's directorate-general for health and consumers stressed that the high level of reports on Chinese, including Hong Kong, manufactured goods was in part due to "the significant market penetration of Chinese-manufactured consumer products in European markets."

In addition increased European contacts with Chinese authorities and businesses "is yielding significant returns in terms of improved product identification and traceability," the report's authors said.

Nevertheless EU Consumer Policy Commissioner John Dalli said he would visit China in June to stress the message that "dangerous products must be blocked at source."

"We think the Chinese have made progress," as European countries put more pressure on their importers," Dalli added.

"We can't order the closure of factories in China. We are going to continue to explain that we want them to intensify their vigilance," he explained.

After China, the second-biggest batch of reports of faulty goods were marked "unknown," demonstrating that work still needs to be done on tracing manufacturers of dubious consumer items.

Next, with a fraction of China's cases, were Germany and Italy, followed by Turkey and Taiwan.

Of the nearly 2000 different items notified to RAPEX, the vast majority were found to pose a serious risk requiring preventative or restrictive measures.

The European consumers' association BEUC, said the EU report shows that there are still far too many dangerous products that are slipping through the net and making it onto the market place.

"We must aim for a situation where dangerous products are virtually non-existent in the marketplace. This will only be done when national authorities are given more resources for market surveillance. The EU is only as strong as its weakest member," said the group's director general Monique Goyens.

Community rapid information system 
for dangerous products (RAPEX) - briefing

Toy Joint Action - briefing

RAPEX - Latest notifications