Masks finally have national standards

The reporter recently learned from the launching ceremony of the "Building a Fence" special action for consumer product safety standards held by the National Standards Committee that the "Technical Specifications for Daily Protective Masks" that has attracted much attention from consumers is expected to be published for comments before the end of the year, and the revised version of the national standard for air purifiers is expected to be approved and released next year.

At present, there are problems such as inconsistent labeling in the daily protective mask market, which makes it difficult for consumers to choose. Sun Ximin, director of the Science and Technology Department of the China National Textile and Apparel Council, said that the formulation of the "Technical Specifications for Daily Protective Masks" will help regulate the daily protective mask market and solve the problem of consumers' difficulty in choosing.

The "Technical Specifications for Daily Protective Masks" formulated this time will involve requirements for mask raw materials, structure, labeling, and appearance. The main indicators include functional indicators such as particulate matter filtration efficiency, inhalation and exhalation resistance, and tightness.

As a textile, the indicators also include formaldehyde content, pH value, microorganisms such as the number of Escherichia coli, total fungal colonies, etc.

In addition, the new national standard will also classify and grade masks. According to the degree of air pollution, masks are divided into those suitable for severe pollution, those suitable for moderate pollution, and those suitable for mild pollution; different exhalation resistance indicators are set to classify masks according to the characteristics of different groups of people, such as adults, children, and the weak.

Similar to the mask market, the air purifier market is also in a state of chaos. Ma Dejun, secretary general of the National Committee for Household Appliance Standards, introduced that last year the National Standards Committee launched the revision of the air purifier standard, revising the basic technical indicators and testing methods such as the purification efficiency of air purifiers in removing solid and gaseous pollutants, clean air volume, and purification life. It also added an inspection of the purification function of air conditioners and car air purifiers, and added test methods for air purifier purification efficiency, formaldehyde, and benzene. The new version of the national standard will make strict regulations on the calculation method of the applicable area of ​​air purifiers.

In addition, this "fence building" special action will also accelerate the establishment, development and approval of 50 national consumer product safety standards and 150 supporting testing method standards and product standards. These safety standards include cross-domain consumer product safety standards such as "Technical Specifications for Chemical Hazards in Consumer Products" and "Basic Safety Technical Conditions for Children's Products", as well as standards that are urgently needed by society, such as "Technical Specifications for Safety of Infant and Children's Textile Products".

It is reported that the special action of "building a fence" for consumer product safety standards was jointly launched by the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, the National Standards Committee and other five ministries and commissions, and will last for three years. Another goal of this special action is to basically achieve the same level of international and domestic standards in key consumer product areas.

The special action will first be launched in 11 key consumer product areas that consumers are most concerned about, such as children's products (toys, children's shoes, children's clothing, and children's cars), textiles and clothing, and household appliances. 300 safety standards covering major safety needs in these areas will be established, and compared and evaluated with corresponding international standards and foreign advanced standards. On the one hand, we will find the gap between domestic and foreign standards and accelerate the transformation to international standards; on the other hand, we will accelerate the internationalization of Chinese standards in our advantageous areas. At the same time, combined with the bilateral trade situation and the actual needs of the industry, we will vigorously promote the process of mutual recognition of standards with major trading countries.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.