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BPOM seizes illegal cosmetics promoted by social media influencers
The Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) has issued a list of 91 illegal cosmetic brands that may contain hazardous substances, which are often sold through online marketplaces and promoted by social media influencers.
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Clamping down: A Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) official inspects seized illegal cosmetics on Feb. 21 during a press briefing in Jakarta. Between Feb. 10 and 18, the BPOM seized more than 205,000 units of illegal cosmetics in various regions across the country. (Antara/Muhammad Adimaja)
The Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) has released a list of 91 brands of illegal cosmetics, from both inside and outside the country, often sold through online marketplaces and advertised on social media.
The list, published on Friday, is based on a nationwide inspection of factories, importers, distributors and retailers carried out between Feb. 10 and 18. Most of the illegal cosmetics were found in Jakarta, Yogyakarta, Bogor in West Java, Palembang in South Sumatra and Makassar in South Sulawesi.
The agency identified 205,133 illegal products of more than 4,000 variants, with a total estimated value of Rp 31.7 billion (US$1.9 million). The figure is 10 times higher than the Rp 3 billion worth of cosmetics seized last year.
Most of the cosmetics were not certified by the BPOM, according to the agency, potentially containing hazardous substances such as mercury, which is linked to skin cancer after long-time exposure, and hydroquinone, which can cause hyperpigmentation, a condition which leads to dark patches of skin.
According to BPOM head Taruna Ikrar there has been a shift in the distribution of these unauthorized cosmetics.
“Many [consumers] choose cosmetics sold online, particularly those reviewed by influencers and ones that went viral on social media,” he said during a press briefing on Friday.
