South Korea media have reported that the Korean Food and Drug Administration (KFDA) has withdrawn several cosmetics and baby powder from the market under alleged contamination with asbestos.

Among the banned items are a face powder, a shading compact in two shades, a make up base and a face colour. The source of contamination would be a talcum powder imported from China by several distributors. Over 300 cosmetics companies, drug manufacturers, and baby powder companies are suspected to have purchased the tainted talc.

The KFDA stated that a sales ban would be put in place on all products suspected of contamination as soon as a full list of these companies is compiled and confirmed. While asbestos affects human health through the lungs, KFDA said that no negative effects of cosmetic powder containing asbestos have been reported.

The alert hit China where the distributor of Nuk baby products has ordered a nationwide recall and is offering refunds. The baby powder is under investigation by the Administration for Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ).