Debate Flares over Cosmetic Safety Technical Standard

Thirty years after China began implementing its “Reform and Opening-up Policy”, China has become the third largest market for cosmetics in the world, just behind Japan and the United States. The total sales have skyrocketed within two and half decades from 350 million in 1986 to 170 billion Yuan in 2011.

To confront customers’ safety concerns, CFDA has in recent years issued a myriad of notifications, standards and measures to tackle illicit manufacture and sale of cosmetics, particularly those that involve use of prohibited substance. 

China’s first major attempt to regulate the cosmetics industry namely “Cosmetic Hygiene Standard” was released in 2007 and is shortly replaced by the “Cosmetic Safety Technical Standard.” The new draft standard increases the number of prohibited substance and supplements the testing methods used for several new prohibited substances. 

To date the “Standard” has undergone quite a few revisions and by 1st September the second round public consultation will end. Its impact on the industry seems to have largely fallen short of expectation. Some experts assert that the lack of proper testing and assessment methods in real life is a major stumbling block. Others contend that despite appending the list of prohibited substance, given current testing capacities there is little possibility of fulfilling the standards testing requirements for these substances.

Chen Shaojun, Secretary General of China Flavor, Fragrance and Cosmetic Industry Association, takes a rather moderate stance underlining the significant role a self-disciplined company could play in ensuring product quality, although, he added, the update of this “Standard” ought to be conducted in line with developments in production technologies. Even still the majority of experts remain confident on China’s ability to manage its cosmetics market in the near future amid continuing growth and development.