Taiwan Border Alert: Zara Home Ceramic Bowls from China Fail Heavy Metal Tests

Increased scrutiny for imports after lead found in popular household items.

Taipei, Taiwan - April 15th, 2024 - The Taiwan Food and Drug Administration (TFDA) has announced the interception of a shipment of ceramic bowls, branded Zara Home, imported from China, due to excessive heavy metal levels. The bowls were flagged during customs inspections.

The ceramic bowls were found to contain 10 parts per million (ppm) of lead, exceeding the legal limit of 5 ppm for food utensils, containers, and packaging under Taiwanese regulations, according to the TFDA.

The affected shipment, imported by ITX Taiwan B.V. Taiwan Branch, has been either returned to the sender or destroyed due to non-compliance with safety standards.

As a consequence of the failed inspection, the importer will now be subject to significantly stricter inspection protocols. Inspections will increase from the current 2-10 percent of each shipment to a range of 20-50 percent.

This heightened scrutiny will be implemented despite data indicating a relatively low failure rate. TFDA Deputy Director-General Lin Chin-fu (林金富) reported that only one out of the last 257 shipments of the product category imported by the company had failed inspection in the past six months.

During the same period, only two out of 4,287 shipments from China of the same product category failed inspection, Lin added.

In related news, another shipment of foldable utensil sets, also imported from China and weighing 68.09 kg, was detained at the border after failing dissolution tests, as announced by Lin.

Furthermore, melamine tableware imported by Taiwan Melamine Products Industrial Co., Ltd. also failed dissolution tests, according to the TFDA.

These three products were among seven non-compliant items identified in the TFDA’s most recent border inspection report.

Other rejected items included Japanese fresh citrus, chopped Indian parsley, and American fresh oranges, which were turned away due to pesticide residue levels exceeding legal limits. Additionally, a shipment of Chinese deer antler extract powder was blocked due to bleaching agent violations.