These 13 Korean Beauty Products Are Being Recalled for Having Toxic Metal

Several products from popular Korean cosmetic brands have been recalled for containing too much of a heavy metal.

On March 19, South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety announced that it found excessive amounts of antimony in 13 cosmetic products sold by eight brands and produced by local original design manufacturer (ODM) Hwasung Cosmetic.

Six of the products are sold by brands under AmorePacific, South Korea’s leading beauty conglomerate.

Image via Wikimedia Commons / Wpcpey (CC BY 3.0)

The ministry bans products with more than 10㎍/g of antimony, a lustrous, silvery, bluish white metal that is also found in batteries, bullets, paints, plastics and textiles, among other materials. It can cause eye and skin irritation, as well as heart, lung and gastrointestinal problems.

The 13 problematic products are being recalled from the stores of 3CE, Aritaum, Black Monster, Etude House, Makeheal, SKEDA, Skinfood and XTM Style Homme.

The recall started on March 20.

Image via Wikimedia Commons / Michaela den (CC BY-SA 3.0)

According to The Korea Herald, AmorePacific released a statement:

“We apologize for the incident, we should have put all our focus on quality assurance. We will do our best to prevent similar cases from happening again. Customers who have products on the recall list can visit Aritaum or Etude House stores to get the products exchanged or refunded.”

A company spokesperson also told The Investor, “Safety regulations differ from country to country. But we will issue recalls in any country that demands it.”

According to The South China Morning Post, some of the products include:

3CE

Slim Eyebrow Pencil (Chestnut Brown)