AmorePacific apologizes for noxious cosmetics

AmorePacfic's Aritaum Full Cover Cream Concealer No. 2 / Courtesy of Ministry of Food and Drug Safety

AmorePacific Chairman Suh Kyung-bae

By Park Jae-hyuk

AmorePacific has apologized Tuesday for its cosmetics products that were found to contain excessive amounts of a carcinogenic heavy metal.

The cosmetics giant said it will voluntarily give refunds for the products at its nationwide stores until April 2.

The measure came after an announcement by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety a day earlier.

The ministry has ordered a suspension of sales and a recall of 13 cosmetics products that were found to contain over 10 micrograms of antimony per gram.

An original design manufacturer named Hwasung Cosmetics supplied the products to eight companies.

The 13 products include four Aritaum concealers, an Etude House concealer and eyebrow pencil.

CJ OliveNetworks' XTM Style Homme Easy Stick Concealer, which has been available at CJ's Olive Young health and beauty store, was also among them.

Aritaum and Etude House are the two most popular AmorePacific budget brands, with Aritaum targeting customers aged 30 or older, while Etude House appeals to those in their 20s or younger.

Olive Young is popular with teenagers and young adults.

The ministry's disclosure has enraged young consumers, who had trusted the safety standards of the conglomerates.

Apologizing for disappointing customers, AmorePacific promised to prevent such incidents from recurring.

"As a manufacturer, we should have paid full attention to quality control," the company said in a statement. "We are sorry for your inconvenience. We will try our best to minimize your inconveniences during the recall."

AmorePacific said customers can get refunds on the problematic products at nationwide Aritaum and Etude House stores.

CJ OliveNetworks said it finished pulling the men's concealer from Olive Young outlets, but has yet to come up with specific measures for customers who have already purchased the products.

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