
Hygroscopic balls for watering plants - Pearl Shape Crystal Soil
Gemme di Rugiada
- Country of origin
- People's Republic of China
- Notifying country
- Italy
- Counterfeit
- No
- Sold online
- No
What is the danger
The products pose a risk of choking and injuries because they are identical in appearance to sugar balls used to decorate cakes, and because they expand rapidly upon contact with water, they may, if accidentally ingested, obstruct the intestine, or, if they enter the airway, impede or completely prevent the passage of air, resulting in respiratory distress and/or asphyxia. The assessment of the article carried out by the Istituto Superiore di Sanità (note 24277 dated 01.06.2010) showed that after only 30 minutes, the balls had increased in volume by over 300%. The products do not comply with the Directive 87/357/EEC on products which, appearing to be other than they are, endanger the health or safety of consumers.
Measures taken
- Seizure of the products, withdrawal from the market and recall from consumers ordered by the authorities. Compulsory measuresTaken by: Other
Product
- Description
- Transparent 8 g package containing hygroscopic balls. Each package contains balls of a single colour. Colours available are: white, transparent, yellow, orange, light green, blue, red, purple, pink. They are available in small, medium and large sizes. Original diameter: small - 1.25 mm; medium - 1.7 to 2.0 mm; large - 2 to 2.5 mm. The product’s specification sheet states that the balls can increase their original weight by 120 to 150 times.
- Category
- Food-imitating products
- Brand
- Model / type
Original source
Data comes from the official Safety Gate system of the European Commission.
- Alert number
- 1716/10 ↗
- Weekly report
- Report-2010-46
- Published
- 18 November 2010
- Corrigendum
- Corrigenda Notification 1643/10 from report 44 of 2010 has been removed from the RAPEX system following additional information on the risk assessment provided by the national authorities. Notifications 1702/10 and 1704/10 from report 46 have been removed from the RAPEX website following additional information on the risk
© European Union, Safety Gate · https://ec.europa.eu/safety-gate-alerts/screen/webReport/alertDetail/-17982