Some of the products which failed the tests include Sure Deal products, Maama Lususu, Skin Doctor, Caro Light toning, Caro Light body lotion, Citro light body cream, Zero Pimples, Zonei, Eclaire cream, Elegance Rico cream, New Santana, Light Cream Super Claire Cream and Elegance Rico cream, among others.
At least 249 samples of products on the Ugandan Market failed the standards test in the month of July, according to the Uganda National Bureau of Standards-UNBS. Cosmetics registered the highest failure rate of 100 percent, followed by anti-bacterial soap, energy saver bulbs, toilet paper, and mattresses.
Some of the products which failed the tests include Sure Deal products, Maama Lususu, Skin Doctor, Caro Light toning, Caro Light body lotion, Citro light body cream, Zero Pimples, Zonei, Eclaire cream, Elegance Rico cream, New Santana, Light Cream Super Claire Cream and Elegance Rico cream, among others.
The list resulted from the market surveillance inspections conducted to determine the level of compliance to Uganda Standards and to protect consumers and the environment from dangerous substandard products.
The cosmetics which failed the tests contained hydroquinone, a banned substance used in skin lightening creams. Various scientific studies have confirmed that hydroquinone may have adverse effects on human health such as damage to internal organs.
According to UNBS, the imported brand of Piao-Piao toilet paper, Virony, Cosy White, Rosy, Sifa, Tena, and Soft Wind were all found to be fake and dangerous to the users. Also on the same list were local brands, among them Eden Brand, Cozy, Hemico, Kleena, Lovely, Luxury, Nannies, Relax Blended Tissue, Silkee Jambo; Soft Nap, Softee Toilet Tissue, Wisper, Super Silk and Swan Soft.
The fake mattresses on the market include Eco Foam and Rio Foam, while fake energy Savers include Canny, CIXING, DXBZ, Long stay, Nomi, Semco, Tedex, UNITEC and Val Light.
“We have published a list of brands that failed our compliance tests because we would like to encourage the public to look out for them and shun them while we continue to play our role of seizing them from the market to protect the health and safety of consumers,” UNBS Executive Director, Dr Ben Manyindo, said.
He added that products that fail compliance tests are seized from the market, kept in UNBS warehouses for further management and destruction. Recently UNBS destroyed more than 400 metric tonnes of substandard products worth 3.5 billion Shillings.
As a result of the laboratory analysis, in July the UNBS Market Surveillance Team seized items 6.2 tonnes of assorted food items, 1.2 tonnes of cosmetics, 2,051 pieces of mattresses, 410 kilogrammes of electrical items, and 450 kilogrammes of toilet paper.
URN Editor
Freelancer
