“YUZHI LAB DISPOSABLE MEDICAL GRADE” facemasks manufactured on March 31, 2021 do not meet quality standards, the Economic and Technological Development Bureau (DSEDT) and Consumer Council (CC) said in a joint statement yesterday, urging residents not to use the facemasks.
The manufacturer of the facemasks is based in Shenzhen. The packaging promises a filtration efficiency of at least 95 percent. It also claims that the 3-ply protection facemasks “effectively protect from airborne particles.”
According to the statement, the facemasks did not pass the standards for bacterial filtration efficiency (BFE) in a local test recently. The statement said that in order to protect residents, the bureau urged all retail outlets to remove the facemasks from their shelves.
The statement said that the Economic and Technological Development Bureau and Consumer Council recently tested 18 different kinds of medical facemasks, comprising 13 facemasks for adults and five for children. The statement noted that the facemasks were tested based on categories such as bacterial filtration efficiency and airway resistance, pointing out that the remaining 17 kinds of medical facemasks all met the standards.
The statement did not elaborate on which kinds of standards the tests were based on.
The statement said that officials from the Economic and Technological Development Bureau and Consumer Council inspected 660 shops and pharmacies that sell medical facemasks. The statement underlined that the medical and non-medical facemasks need to be labelled and separated on two different shelves.
The statement warned retailers that they should only order their goods from “credible” suppliers and ensure that the products they sell meet the required quality standards.
The statement pointed out that as there are various types of facemasks, which have different functions, the government is urging residents to opt for medical facemasks and buy them only from “credible” retailers.
This handout photo provided by the Economic and Technological Development Bureau (DSEDT) and Consumer Council (CC) yesterday shows “YUZHI LAB” DISPOSABLE MEDICAL GRADE facemasks, which do not satisfy the quality standards for bacterial filtration efficiency, according to a joint statement by the two official entities.
