Chinese health experts had started looking into the powder after South Korean authorities over the weekend found it contained asbestos, a fibrous silicate mineral.

The Pharmacy Department under Vietnam’s Ministry of Health on Thursday asked the National Medicine Testing Institute and its counterpart in Ho Chi Minh City to take baby powder samples for asbestos tests.

They were also asked to keep an eye on all kinds of cosmetics being sold nationwide for asbestos content.

The move aims to eliminate tainted cosmetic products, allay public concern and help producers and sellers of clean products win back consumer trust, the department said.

Many NUK products, produced by the German MAPA, such as baby handkerchief and baby brushes are being sold in Vietnam.

Employees at Co.opMart supermarket on Nguyen Dinh Chieu Street in HCMC say the supermarket used to sell NUK baby powder but stopped many years ago as it was more expensive, Tien Phong newspaper reported on its website.

The 2003 Cosmetics Directive between Southeast Asian nations prohibits the presence of asbestos in cosmetic products. Inhaling the chemical can cause cancer of the respiratory system.

Chinese authorities have sealed all NUK baby powder at Suzhou Debao Baby Supplies, NUK’s major agent in China, as part of its investigations, CCTV said in its Monday online report.

Suzhou Debao had imported more than 11 tons of semi-finished baby powder from South Korea since March last year.

EU members and the US have since 2005 have ordered cosmetics producers to ensure there is no asbestos in any product.

Source: Agencies