China’s National Medical Products Administration (国家药品监督管理局, NMPA) has named 45 batches of cosmetics that failed its 2026 national sampling tests. Twenty-one failed on microbial counts and 15 sunscreen batches failed on sunscreen ingredients, according to Notice No. 36 of 2026, published on 15 October 2026.
Notice No. 36 lists 45 batches found in the 2026 national sampling
The NMPA notice says the batches were tested by the Tianjin Institute for Drug Control (天津市药品检验研究院) and other institutions. The notice is dated 14 October 2026 and was posted on 15 October.
The NMPA has asked provincial regulators in Beijing, Jiangsu, Shandong, Henan, Guangdong and other places to open investigations into the registrants, filers and contract manufacturers named. Provincial regulators must order retailers to stop selling the products and trace their sources.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Issuing body | National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) |
| Document number | Notice No. 36 of 2026 (2026年第36号) |
| Issue date | 14 October 2026 (posted 15 October 2026) |
| Effective date | Not stated in the notice |
| Scope | 45 batches from the 2026 national cosmetics sampling programme |
| Legal basis cited | Cosmetics Supervision and Administration Regulation and two NMPA measures on production, sale and sampling |
Twenty-one batches failed on microbial counts
Twenty batches exceeded limits for total aerobic bacterial count and one exceeded the limit for moulds and yeasts. The failures include face masks, body wash, shampoo, conditioner and two toothpastes, which China regulates under cosmetics rules.
The highest bacterial count listed was 820,000 CFU per gram for an anti-wrinkle face mask, against a limit of 1,000 CFU per gram. The two toothpastes recorded 20,000 and 30,000 CFU per gram, against a limit of 500.
Unit: batches
Number of batches by failed test item · Source: NMPA, 15 October 2026
View as table
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Total aerobic bacterial count | 20 batches |
| Sunscreen ingredients differ from registration | 14 batches |
| pH value | 6 batches |
| MCI/MI preservative above limit | 3 batches |
| Moulds and yeasts | 1 batches |
| Ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate above limit | 1 batches |
Fifteen sunscreen batches failed on sunscreen ingredients
Fourteen sunscreen batches failed an ingredient comparison test. In these products, sunscreen agents stated in the registration documents were not detected, or agents not stated were detected, such as octocrylene.
One further sunscreen contained 13.8 percent ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate on retest, above the 10 percent limit. Sunscreens are special-use cosmetics in China and require registration before sale.
Six whitening or freckle-removing creams failed pH limits
Six batches failed on pH value, all sold as whitening or freckle-removing products. Readings ranged from 4.4 to 7.01, each outside the range stated for that product.
Three rinse-off products, two shampoos and a body wash, exceeded the 0.0015 percent limit for the preservative mix methylchloroisothiazolinone and methylisothiazolinone (MCI/MI). The highest reading was 0.01065 percent.
| Product type | Test item | Result | Requirement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anti-wrinkle face mask | Total aerobic count | 820,000 CFU/g | ≤1,000 CFU/g |
| Toothpaste | Total aerobic count | 30,000 CFU/g | ≤500 CFU/g |
| Whitening sunscreen SPF50+ | Ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate | 13.8% (retest) | ≤10% |
| Shampoo | MCI/MI | 0.01065% | ≤0.0015% |
| Whitening serum | pH value | 4.4 | 5.0–6.5 |
Fourteen batches were sampled from Douyin, Pinduoduo and Tmall shops
The annex names an online shop for 14 of the 45 sampled sellers. On a simple count of those names, seven were Douyin shops, four Pinduoduo shops and three Tmall shops.
By the stated location of the registrant, filer or distributor, 39 batches were labelled as from Guangdong. One batch, a whitening essence lotion sold through a Pinduoduo store, was labelled as imported from Japan.
Unit: batches
Number of batches by sampled seller, as named in the annex · Source: NMPA, 15 October 2026; CMB count
View as table
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| No online shop named | 31 batches |
| Douyin shops | 7 batches |
| Pinduoduo shops | 4 batches |
| Tmall shops | 3 batches |
How the figures were compiled
- Source: NMPA Notice No. 36 of 2026 and its annex listing 45 batches.
- Test-item counts follow the annex’s “non-compliant item” column; each batch has one listed item.
- Channel counts are CMB’s count of sellers whose annex entry includes an online shop name (网店商铺名称).
- Product names in the annex are as labelled; the notice says these are “labelled” names and details.
- Some results are marked as retest results in the annex.
