Skip to content
Fashion

Shein clothes found to contain high levels of toxic chemicals in Korean tests

By Rajiv Menon
1 min read
Shein clothes found to contain high levels of toxic chemicals in Korean tests

Clothing purchased from Shein for scientific testing has been found to contain “significant quantities” of potentially dangerous chemicals.

The investigation found that one pair of shoes contained 428 times the permitted levels of phthalates – the highest observed during the Seoul government tests – and three bags had amounts as high as 153 times the limit.

Phthalate is a chemical compound used in the production of plastics that is thought to be hazardous to human health. The city has urged the Chinese e-commerce platform to stop selling the products.

Shein responded that it takes product safety “very seriously” and that the firm has undertaken 400,000 chemical safety tests of products within the past year.

Weekly Briefing

Asia's retail intelligence, in your inbox

Tuesday, Thursday and a Saturday Weekly Wrap: the retail stories, numbers and moves that mattered across Asia. Nothing else, and you can unsubscribe in one click.

  • Top industry moves and market shifts
  • Weekly data-driven analysis from across Asia
  • Tuesday, Thursday and the Saturday Weekly Wrap

Read by retail operators, investors and brand teams across Asia.

Protected by a quick human check. No spam, ever. Unsubscribe in one click.

SecureGDPR ready