“I Just Won One Yesterday”... Hazardous Substances Found in Six Out of 10 Prizes at Unmanned Claw-Machine Arcades

[Financial News] Hazardous chemicals exceeding safety standards were detected in six out of 10 prizes, including stuffed toys and key rings, offered at unmanned claw-machine arcades. In some products, phthalate plasticizers were detected at levels up to 347.5 times higher than the permitted limit.
The Korea Consumer Agency (KCA) announced on the 10th the results of a safety inspection conducted from April to July on 20 products distributed at unmanned claw-machine arcades nationwide and 16 businesses. Unmanned claw-machine arcades have rapidly increased in popularity as spaces where customers can win stuffed toys, key rings and stationery items themselves.
The KCA found phthalate plasticizers, lead and cadmium exceeding the common safety standards for children’s products in 12 of the 20 products. That represents 60%. Although unmanned claw-machine arcades are facilities used by children as well, none of the 20 products inspected had a safety certification mark or an indication of the appropriate age range.
Phthalate plasticizers exceeded the permitted limit in nine products. The highest level detected was 347.5 times the limit. Lead was detected at up to 2.7 times the limit in eight products, while cadmium was found at up to 1.23 times the limit in two products.
Phthalate plasticizers are substances used to soften plastic. They can affect children’s reproductive functions and physical development. Lead and cadmium are classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as substances carcinogenic to humans.
Manufacturer information was also not properly provided. Ten of the 20 products inspected had no manufacturer information. The other 10 were stuffed toys featuring famous characters and displayed the names of the relevant brand manufacturers, but they were suspected of being counterfeit products. When the KCA compared them with genuine products, some lacked identification labels such as serial numbers or QR codes, while others generated error messages when the labels were checked. There were also clear differences in shape and color compared with the genuine products.
Hazardous chemicals exceeding safety standards were found in eight of the 10 products suspected of being counterfeit.
Problems were also found in store facility management. All 16 businesses inspected had floor areas of at least 33 square meters, but four of them, or 25%, had no fire extinguishers. Two businesses, or 12.5%, had broken floor tiles, and one had placed knives and gardening scissors in locations easily accessible to customers.
Two stores had not posted notices restricting use by juveniles, while three had not displayed safety rules for customers. Eleven stores were also found not to have posted their registration certificates for youth game businesses.
The KCA plans to share the inspection results and recommendations for improvement with the relevant local governments and propose on-site inspections. It also plans to ask relevant government ministries to strengthen safety oversight of products distributed at unmanned claw-machine arcades and the facilities themselves.
[email protected] Han Seung-gon Reporter