The General Manager of the New Zealand Ministry of Consumer
Affairs Liz MacPherson has informed China's commerce counselor Liu
Linlin that clothes made in China are safe after testing them for
formaldehyde, China's quality control administration said on
Tuesday.
MacPherson said the ministry collected 100 samples of clothing
and asked independent labs to carry out the tests. Of all the
samples, 84 percent were manufactured in China, seven percent in
New Zealand and nine percent in other countries. The proportions
were decided on the basis of the market share of the clothes in New
Zealand, she said.
Excluding one overlapping sample, 97 samples met the
international standard by having a formaldehyde concentration of
far less than 200 ppm. The formaldehyde concentration in 2 samples,
one from China, reached 250 ppm but was reduced to 54 ppm by
washing, so these two kinds of clothes should be labeled with
warnings like "pre-wash before use," according to the test
results.
MacPherson said the results proved that clothes made in China
are safe and New Zealand would publicize the results to clarify the
facts.
She also said children's pajama exports from China were safe and
reminded parents in New Zealand to read the labels carefully before
buying and using them.
In August, New Zealand launched an investigation into children's
pajamas made in China after two complaints involving children who
suffered burns while wearing the pajamas. The test results from an
independent laboratory released by New Zealand's Commerce
Commission proved that the pajamas produced in China were up to
safety standards.
(Xinhua News Agency October 17, 2007)
