Baby products sold by Shein have been found to contain excessive amounts of toxic substances

On May 28, children’s leather products sold by Shein were put on display and found to contain toxic substances in a safety test conducted by the Seoul city government. (YONHAP)

The latest safety inspection by the Seoul city government found toxic substances in levels up to 428 times the permitted level in baby items sold by Chinese e-commerce Shein to a Seoul resident, officials said on Tuesday.

The city has been publishing such information weekly since last month amid growing concerns about the safety of products from Chinese e-commerce giants, which have quickly become leading players in South Korea’s online shopping market.

Seven of the eight Shein children’s leather products for which the city conducted its latest safety inspection contained toxic substances.

Of the four leather bags checked, one contained formaldehyde at 1.2 times the permitted level, while the others contained phthalate plasticizers at up to 153 times the permitted level.

Of the two pairs of children’s shoes, one contained formaldehyde more than 1.8 times the permissible limit, while the other contained phthalate plasticizers more than 428 times the permissible limit.

One leather strap was also found to contain 1.78 times more lead than allowed.

Since early April, the city has conducted such safety tests on products of Chinese e-commerce giants such as AliExpress and Temu seven times. Of the 93 products tested so far, about 40, or 43 percent, contained toxic substances.

The city also asked Chinese e-commerce platforms to stop selling the products and restrict access to them.

Phthalate plasticizers are endocrine disrupting chemicals that can affect human reproductive function.

AT EUN-JEE PARK, YONHAP ([email protected])