Some countries have lamented the defective nature of face masks and testing kits bought from China to tackle the current coronavirus pandemic.
Spain and Netherlands are among major European countries raising concerns about the quality of these materials.
The Dutch government said it has recalled about 600,000 masks out of a shipment of 1.3 million from China for not meeting quality standards.
The defective masks had already been distributed to several hospitals currently battling the COVID-19 outbreak,.
The Dutch Health Ministry has kept the rest of the shipment on hold, according to reports.
It said an inspection revealed that the FFP2 masks did not protect the face properly or had defective filter membranes.
The fine filters stop the virus from entering the mouth or nose but these masks from China failed more than one inspection.
“A second test also revealed that the masks did not meet the quality norms. Now it has been decided not to use any of this shipment,” the health ministry said in a statement.
Meanwhile the Spanish government has also withdrawn 58,000 Chinese-made coronavirus testing kits from use.
The kits only had an accurate detection rate of just 30% and for Spain struggling with the pandemic that is a major concern.
Spain had looked to China for rapid testing kits equipment and other supplies. It intends spending €432m on tests, masks, gloves and other personal protective equipment.
But in a statement Spain’s health ministry said it would be returning the kits. Spain reportedly though bought the items from a company that purchased them in China.
“The first tests on the rapid testing kits were carried out simultaneously by a hospital in Madrid and by the Carlos III Health Institute, and as soon as their low sensitivity was discovered, they were withdrawn,” the ministry said in its statement.
“The supplier has been contacted and replacement tests will be provided.”
China has been at the forefront of the fight against the pandemic supplying many countries with masks and testing kits.
It has reportedly responded to reports of the defective materials saying some of the countries did not purchase the items from approved manufacturers in China.
Source: Africafeeds.com
