Shanghai customs officials have tracked down, seized and destroyed more than 120,000 fake face masks bound for African countries following public calls for a thorough investigation on the quality of masks sold in the local market.
The China News Service reported on Monday, Dec. 7, that the confiscated masks were counterfeits of products originally designed by 3M, a company based in Minnesota in the U.S.
According to 3M, the face masks may pose a threat to wearers' health since they were made from low-quality materials.
In 2013, Shanghai police raided eight criminal rings producing and selling counterfeit 3M-brand breathing masks.
The counterfeit masks were condemned by many people on social media, while some expressed concerns about the general quality of anti-pollution masks, which are in high demand throughout China amid the occurring smog, the Global Times reported.
The report said that as the air pollution in China worsened, sales of anti-pollution products have also increased in recent years.
On China's biggest online shopping platform, Taobao.com, consumers reportedly spent 870 million yuan ($135 million) on anti-smog products in 2013, according to the site.
"Public awareness of air pollution has been growing in the past few years. Chinese people are learning how to protect themselves from health problems caused by air pollution," said Dong Liansai, a Greenpeace air pollution observer.
According to Mu Ren, an agent for the Singaporean mask brand Totobobo in China, low-quality anti-air pollution products are common online, adding that there are at least three kinds of counterfeit Totobobo masks.
"Face masks designed for air pollution require high-tech materials and specially designed filters, which can hardly be obtained by copycats. The fake masks can do little to keep out air pollutants," Mu told the Global Times.
"Phony masks that have not been inspected by health authorities can cause allergic reactions and may harm the wearers' health," Wang Jian, director of respiratory medicine at the Shanghai No. 9 People's Hospital, said.
On June 24, China's Standardization Administration released a draft of anti-pollution mask standards which specified the acceptable materials, designs and filtration efficiency for the mask.
Over the last few days, many cities in northern China have been under severe air pollution. On Wednesday, Beijing reported an average PM2.5 concentration exceeding 332 micrograms per cubic meter, which reached the heaviest pollution class in a six-tier pollution measuring scheme.