AN abundance of questionable cosmetics coming from a local warehouse was seized by the Drug Regulation Authority (DRA), said U Win Khet Htun, deputy director general and DRA’s spokesperson. The DRA team noticed several questionable cosmetic products in a warehouse owned by Oo Sauk Co Ltd (No. 10) in South Dagon Industrial Zone-4. “The warehouse was located in an industrial zone. The products were stored in a place where fuel and oil were kept. As they were cosmetic products, they should not have been placed in such an area, so the team questioned the owner of the warehouse,” said U Win Khet Htun. After questioning the warehouse owner, the DRA team found that cosmetic products, including hair oil, hair cream, aloe vera gel and other products, were all stored together with fuel and oil. The team, therefore, seized these suspicious cosmetic products. “We seized 2,090 packs or 1,015.2 kilograms of questionable cosmetics. The products did not have manufacturers’ information or labels. The products we seized were hair oil, hair cream, body lotion and cream and aloe vera gel. We only seized products that were placed in a location not suitable for cosmetic products to be stored,” said the DRA deputy director general. The DRA will analyze the seized products at the Central Laboratory under the Ministry of Health to see if they meet standards. The DRA will also take action against the warehouse as suitable, he added. In previous years, DRA had seized a large number of questionable cosmetics coming in from foreign countries. For example, on 13 October 2023, the DRA seized 45,126 bottles of hair oil from a warehouse in Yangon’s Hlaingtharyar Township. The seized hair oil was valued at over MMK100 million and the DRA took action against the warehouse owner under the Export and Import Law. The DRA also takes action against shops selling questionable cosmetics. For example, on 24 November 2023, the DRA inspected a cosmetic shop in Monywa, Sagaing Region, and seized 124 packs or 61.75 kilograms of questionable cosmetics without labels. The DRA took action against the shop owner under the Export and Import Law and the Cosmetics Law. The DRA will continue to conduct inspections at warehouses and shops that sell cosmetics to prevent people from using unsafe cosmetic products. It is important for the public to know that DRA has taken action against the sellers of questionable cosmetic products in the past, and that it will continue to do so in the future. Therefore, the public should be careful when purchasing cosmetic products and should only purchase them from reputable sellers..
Shipment of questionable cosmetics seized by Drug Regulation Authority
