A sampling inspection on 75 products with the MIT (made in Taiwan) Smile Logo found that six products violated government regulations by bearing false labels — a violation rate of 8 percent — the Consumer Protection Committee said yesterday.
The MIT Smile Logo, a certification to inform consumers of Taiwanese-made products, was introduced by the Ministry of Economic Affairs in 2010 to help domestic enterprises that were vulnerable to being adversely impacted by free trade.
At present, there are more than 60,000 products that have gained the approval of the MIT Smile Product Certification System and are allowed to carry the logo.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
However, a sample inspection conducted jointly by the committee, the ministry and the MIT Smile Logo Promotion Office at traditional markets, wholesale stores and night markets between March and May showed that 11 out of 75 products surveyed violated labeling regulations.
Consumer ombudsman Wang Teh-ming (王德明) said six products bore the MIT Smile Logo without having attained official approval from the certification system, and nine distribution outlets had used the logo without permission or set up misguiding MIT product sections without ensuring that all the products had been made in Taiwan.
The committee also found that products carried both old and new MIT Smile Logo tags, Wang said, adding that the confusion could lead to fake logos entering the market.
The logo tags were changed in August 2010 and they are now diamond-shaped and contain an additional verification code, Wu said, adding that the bureau would also check for fake tags in upcoming inspections.
Industrial Development Bureau official Wu Chen-hua (吳振華) said the bureau would begin a general nationwide investigation this month in an effort to stamp out violations and earn the trust of consumers.
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