THE Pharmacy Enforcement Division, Ministry of Health Malaysia (MoH) together with the State Pharmacy Branch throughout Malaysia conducted two integrated operations simultaneously on Nov 18 and Nov 23, 2020.
The integrated operations, called ‘Ops Minyak’ and ‘Ops Kasturi’, involved the seizure of products not registered with the Drug Control Authority (DCA) as well as cosmetics that are not notified by the MoH.
The total value of product seizures in both operations is estimated to be RM350,000 involving raids on 37 well-known supermarket chains and also 33 grocery stores in business areas throughout Malaysia.
A total of 207 types of items seized include products not registered with DCA as well cosmetics that are not notified by MoH, which includes hand sanitizer products.
The public is advised to be careful when buying or using health products and cosmetics in the market. Such products need to be sourced from legitimate sources only.
Consumers should always be vigilant when purchasing health products at social sites or online to avoid the risk of getting an unregistered product, counterfeit products or mixed with scheduled poisons or un-notified cosmetics which can be detrimental to the health and lives of consumers.
Consumers should also constantly check for product labels and ensure the health products sold have hologram stickers and Product Registration Numbers (MAL), in addition to ensuring that the cosmetics sold are notified.
