Children's sandals sold on AliExpress that failed a safety inspection in Seoul. Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Government
Safety tests on children's products sold through overseas online shopping platforms found dangerously high levels of toxic chemicals in some sandals and other items, prompting Seoul city officials to request the sale of the items be stopped.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Tuesday that five of 21 children's products purchased from AliExpress, Temu and Shein failed to meet Korea's safety standards after inspections of summer footwear, toys and hats.
The city said two pairs of children's sandals contained phthalate plasticizers at levels up to 284.6 times above the legal limit of 0.1 percent.
Phthalates are chemicals used to make plastics more flexible and have been linked to endocrine disruption and reproductive health problems.
