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US Lab Test Finds Dangerous Chemicals, Heavy Metals in Counterfeit Products

Research by American Apparel & Footwear Association finds that a third of the counterfeit products do not comply with US product safety standards.

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24 March 2022

 3 minutes
Long Story, Cut Short
  • There is a truly astounding prevalence of unsafe counterfeits showing up every minute of every day across even the most trusted e-commerce and social media platforms.
  • Arsenic, lead, cadmium and many phthalates found in counterfeits can seriously harm a child’s health and cause well-documented adverse effects.
A 2017 study had found that the negative impacts of counterfeiting and piracy were projected to drain US$4.2 trillion from the global economy and put 5.4 million legitimate jobs at risk by 2022. Now, the AAFA study finds that they are physically harmful too to consumers.
Faked and Dangerous A 2017 study had found that the negative impacts of counterfeiting and piracy were projected to drain US$4.2 trillion from the global economy and put 5.4 million legitimate jobs at risk by 2022. Now, the AAFA study finds that they are physically harmful too to consumers. Unsplash

Till the other day, the counterfeit menace only hurt the fashion industry. But a just-released study finds that they harm consumers by their very nature: of the 47 counterfeit products tested in a laboratory—including clothing, footwear, and other accessories—17 products (or 36.2%) failed to comply with US product safety standards.

The research

  • The American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) worked with Intertek, an international total quality assurance provider, to test counterfeit products for a range of hazardous chemicals and heavy metals.
  • All the hazardous chemicals found in the tested counterfeit products are listed in the AAFA Restricted Substances List (RSL).
  • The AAFA RSL is an open-industry resource and trusted tool that lists all banned and restricted chemicals and substances for finished apparel, footwear, accessories, and home textile products. The RSL identifies the most restrictive regulations worldwide for each substance.
  • The 22nd edition of the RSL, released in May 2021, covers 12 categories with more than 250 chemicals.

The alarming facts the study uncovered:

  • Arsenic is recognised by the World Health Organization (WHO) as one of 10 chemicals of major public health concern. It is carcinogenic and has been shown to cause adverse outcomes to pregnant women and their babies. Exposure in utero and in early childhood has been linked to increases in mortality in young adults due to multiple cancers, lung disease, heart attacks, and kidney failure. Numerous studies have demonstrated negative impacts of arsenic exposure on cognitive development, intelligence, and memory.  
  • Exposure to lead can seriously harm a child’s health and cause well-documented adverse effects. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has noted that there is no safe level of lead exposure for children and even small amounts of lead in blood have been shown to negatively affect a child’s intelligence, ability to pay attention and academic achievement.  
  • Many phthalates have been found to be endocrine disruptors that could adversely affect children’s health. They have been linked to heart disease, early death, and hormone disruption. Further, the National Research Council has concluded that prenatal exposure to certain phthalates could cause harm in utero.
  • According to the WHO, cadmium is a toxic heavy metal that causes damage to kidneys, bones, and respiratory systems and is defined as a human carcinogen. A single accessory tested as part of AAFA’s study demonstrated 600 times over the exposure limit of this substance.

 

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Young India Fashion Survey 2025
Jaehee Jung, associate professor of fashion and apparel studies at University of Delaware, had ound interesting differences between German and Koren buyers of counterfeit items: "German consumers want high-quality goods, and they worry that counterfeits won’t have the quality they desire. Korean consumers are more concerned about social perceptions and making a good impression on others. They worry that people will think less of them if they are known to buy counterfeits.”
Foreign Goods, Made in Korea Jaehee Jung, associate professor of fashion and apparel studies at University of Delaware, had ound interesting differences between German and Koren buyers of counterfeit items: "German consumers want high-quality goods, and they worry that counterfeits won’t have the quality they desire. Korean consumers are more concerned about social perceptions and making a good impression on others. They worry that people will think less of them if they are known to buy counterfeits.” Adli Wahid / Unsplash

The backdrop

  • 2017 study: The negative impacts of counterfeiting and piracy were projected to drain US$4.2 trillion from the global economy and put 5.4 million legitimate jobs at risk by 2022. [The Economic Impacts of Counterfeiting and Piracy, a report commissioned by ICC’s Business Action to Stop Counterfeiting and Piracy (BASCAP) and the International Trademark Association (INTA).]
  • 2019 report: A study on trade in counterfeit and pirated goods put the value of imported fake goods worldwide based on 2016 customs seizure data at US$509 billion, up from US$461 billion in 2013 (2.5% of world trade). For the European Union, counterfeit trade represented 6.8% of imports from non-EU countries, up from 5% in 2013, according to a report by the OECD and the EU’s Intellectual Property Office. The biggest segments: footwear 22%, clothing 16% and leather goods 13%.
  • According to Ghost Data, about 20% of fashion products advertised on social media platforms are fake.
Stephen Lamar
Stephen Lamar
President and CEO
American Apparel & Footwear Association

There is a truly astounding prevalence of unsafe counterfeits showing up every minute of every day across even the most trusted e-commerce and social media platforms.

 
 
  • Dated posted: 24 March 2022
  • Last modified: 24 March 2022
 
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