... Italy's Health Ministry is investigating claims that shoes imported f...
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Italy's Health Ministry is investigating claims that shoes imported from China contain toxic substances banned under European rules.
The probe look into complaints by the Italian Shoe Manufacturers Association that nickel and other substances used by Chinese manufacturers in the shoes' dyeing process pose a health hazard.
Roberto Vallasciani of the manufacturers' guild says the health problems may include irritation to the skin and allergies.
"The probe will last six months, with results published every month," Health Minister Francesco Storace said Monday.
Italian shoe manufacturers accuse their Chinese rivals of unfair competition, saying imported products do not have to pass stringent safety rules applied by the European Union on local producers.
"This is not about protectionism, it is about enforcing a minimum set of rules," Vallasciani told daily Il Messaggero.
Italy, one of the world's biggest shoes making nations, has seen its the number of cheap shoe imports from China increase by 700 per cent over the past two years.
Storace said random tests on Chinese shoes had already started and announced that his office was considering extending such tests to other Chinese imports, such as clothing and toys
