Unmasked: the quality dangers in China’s new coronavirus-induced boom industry

Surging international demand for personal protective equipment has lured new players into the lucrative industry

But not all entrants can meet the standards required in the country and overseas

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Staff work pack medical masks at a workshop in Tangshan, north China's Hebei province. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 6:00pm, 13 Apr 2020Updated: 11:10pm, 13 Apr 2020

In the eastern Chinese province of Zhejiang, a sock manufacturer sensed an opportunity in February when the country was in the depths of the coronavirus epidemic.

The entrepreneur from Jiaxing decided to get into the business of making medical masks but when he tried to buy the machinery he discovered that he was not alone.

“There were already too many buyers,” he said, declining to be named.

“So we ended up buying a machine that is designed to produce other items instead of masks. They needed to modify it into a mask-making one. So we waited for about a month before it finally arrived in late March.

“With only one machine now, our company can only produce 40,000 to 50,000 masks a day. But I am afraid to invest more as the market now is just so chaotic.”

Mask making is a booming industry in China as countries around the world scramble to source supplies of personal protective equipment for health workers treating the rising number of coronavirus patients. In addition, the World Health Organisation has reversed course and now supports government initiatives that require or encourage the public wearing of masks.

But the rush to capitalise has exposed quality problems for both importers and exporters.