Beijing, for the first time, will spot check fashion doll Barbie, the Beijing news reported Thursday.
The spot check is being launched after a the release of a German report that some Barbie materials are harmful, officials with Beijing Bureau of Quality and Technical Supervision was quoted by the paper as saying.
Beijing has spot checked plastic toys several times this year but Barbie has not been included since it is a famous brand, officials said.
The fashion doll Barbie on Beijing market is mainly from China's Guangdong province and Indonesia, the paper said.
"The materials to make the Barbie are safe and the products are up to international standard," the Mattel China Group is quotes by the paper as saying.
The Mattel China Group's Guangdong Branch is the largest manufacturer of Barbie dolls, with 35 million dolls produced yearly.
The harmful materials mentioned by the German reports can do harm to small boys less than three years old, an expert is quoted by the paper as saying.
(Xinhua News Agency December 8, 2005)
