PRODUCT SAFETY and RECALLS in Southeast Asia and Malaysia

Contoh Senarai Semakan Penarikan Balik Produk  (Product Recall) Semakan keperluan undang-undang, peraturan and standard berkaiatan Penarikan Balik Produk dari pasaran di mana produk tersebut dikeluarkan atau dijual. Tentukan jenis produk yang terjejas / terlibat dalam penarikan balik produk (cth: saiz, warna, perisa, model, dll) Kenalpasti dengan terperinci / unik  produk yang terlibat dalam penarikan balik (cth kod UPC, nombor kelompok pengeluaran, no. lot, number siri dll) Kenalpasti semua penjual dan pengguna yang terlibat dalam penarikan balik produk tersebut Kenalpasti samada penarikan balik produk lain perlu dirujuk dalam notis penarikan balik baru/ terkini. Tentukan keperluan memberhentikan pengeluaran dan jualan produk – produkyang terlibat dalam penarikan balik  Sebarang perubahan dalam penarikan balik produk berbanding dengan peringkat awal penarikan balik produk tersebut (arahan pengendalian yang baru, siaran media dll). Jika ya, notis dengan maklumat ...

This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly, on  March 5, 2018  - March 11, 2018. WHILE the European Parliament’s plan to phase out palm oil from member states’ consumption of bio-fuel by 2021 is dominating headlines, a bigger threat to the industry is the issue of food safety. The presence of 3MCPDE (3-Monochloropropane-1, 2-diol esters) and GE (Glycidyl esters) in refined vegetable oils, including palm oil, could become a bigger headache for the industry if it is not addressed effectively. Two compounds in particular — 3-MCPD and glycidol — pose health risks to humans as they could be carcinogenic. Note: See also TPC testing report  2011. UPDATES March 18, 2018: Process contaminants in vegetable oils and foods (Q&A) 18 May 2015 What are process contaminants? Process contaminants are chemical substances that have not been intentionally added to food but are produced during food processing steps such as cooking, heating or purification of fo...

Today consumers get recognized for their contribution to the global economy and issue a call to make consumption more mindful, safer and fairer. The world federation of consumers associations – Consumers International has been choosing themes related to e-commerce and digital world for the 2014, 2017 and 2018 World Consumer Rights Day. Why is this theme so important to consumers? The internet has transformed the way companies and consumers do business. While global trade growth has been slow for several years, the value of online business grew from $16 trillion to $22 trillion between 2013 and 2015. But many developing countries are being left behind — stranded on the wrong side of the digital divide. In Africa, only 1 in 4 people has access to the internet, and across the developing world the majority of small and medium sized companies still have no online presence. However, e-commerce and online shopping may just change the shape of global trade and trade agreements. In Aug...

Takata Corporation went bust ad filed for bankruptcy following the recalls of millions of its airbags installed in a range of car models.  To date more or less 100 million vehciles have been recalled and another 2 million is expected to be recalled in Australia alone. There has been 20 deaths reported so far around the world and the first in Malaysia was reported in November of 2014  . The most recent death in Malaysia involving the airbag was on new year’s  day this year (2018) . In total there were 6 deaths associated with faulty airbags in Malaysia. What was interesting about the most recent death was that the owner allegedly did not respond to the notice for the model to be sent for airbag replacement! A publication of a position paper about the state of safety and recalls in the automotive sector in Malaysia was issued in 2016 and identified significant shortcomings in the management of voluntary and mandatory recalls in Malaysia. In short the absence of regulat...

Potentially dangerous levels of metals leak from some e-cigarette heating coils. Significant amounts of toxic metals, including lead, leak from some e-cigarette heating coils and are present in the aerosols inhaled by users, according to a study from scientists at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. In the study, published online in Environmental Health Perspectives on February 21, the scientists examined e-cigarette devices owned by a sample of 56 users. They found that significant numbers of the devices generated aerosols with potentially unsafe levels of lead, chromium, manganese and/or nickel. Chronic inhalation of these metals has been linked to lung, liver, immune, cardiovascular and brain damage, and even cancers. Translation Bahasa Malaysia: Lingkaran pemanas di dalam rokok electronik dipercayai boleh mengeluarkan sebatian logam toksik - termasuk Plumbum (Pb). Sebatian tersebut juga terdapat dalam bahan aerosol yang dihidu oleh pengguna rokok ele...

5 February 2018: Household cleaning products are as a bad for lung function as smoking, a new study has show n. In a new report women who worked as cleaners or regularly use cleaning sprays for 20 years were found to have lung decline equivalent to smoking 20 cigarettes a day over the same period. They were also 40 per cent more likely to develop asthma. "When you think of inhaling small particles from cleaning agents that are meant for cleaning the floor and not your lungs, maybe it is not so surprising after all," said lead author Øistein Svanes of the University of Bergen, Norway, who carried out the research on more than 6,000 cleaners over 20 years. Read more.... NOTE: Department of Standards Malaysia has developed a Malaysian Standard (MS) based on the ‘purple book’, i.e the MS 1804: 008 - Globally Harmonised System (GHS) for Classification and Labeling of Chemicals – Specifications for the Classification, Labeling and Formulation of Safety Data Sh...