Half of the children's furniture inspected recently by Shanghai's market watchdog failed to meet safety standards, officials said yesterday.
The Shanghai Industrial and Commercial Administrative Bureau examined 34 batches of children's furniture offered by four websites (Tmall, yhd.com, jia.com and JD.com) and 18 stores (including Red Star Macalline and Homevalue) and found that 17 batches were substandard.
The worst offenders were the online vendors — nearly 80 percent of their merchandise was substandard, according to the bureau.
Inspectors found that some merchandise had sharp edges that could hurt users and others did not have adequate warning stickers or come with information materials.
For example, hinges should be marked with a warning sign, and package information should clearly state the age group for which it is intended, the bureau said.
Officials did not specify which brands were found to be unacceptable, but the goods have been taken off the market.
Meanwhile, the bureau yesterday revealed that a consignment of "Gujia Furniture" wooden chairs sold at Nanfangzhongyi Furniture Store in Fengxian District contained four times more formaldehyde than is considered acceptable.
The chemical was also found in unsafe levels in a consignment of teapoys labeled "Luyifajia" that were sold by Shanghai Shimao Furniture Co Ltd.
All items have been taken off the market and their producers have been told to take corrective action, said the bureau.
Meanwhile, the solid wood furniture section at the China Huaxia Housing and Furnishing Exposition at the Shanghai Everbright Convention and Exhibition Center was forced to suspend trade after some participants were found to be dishonest about the materials used to make their products, said the Shanghai Consumer Rights Protection Commission.
The Xuhui District Market Supervision and Management Bureau is investigating.
