PVC sandals are popular with parents and children due to their vibrant colors and diverse styles. However, PVC itself is relatively hard and usually requires the addition of plasticizers to make it soft. Phthalates are commonly used due to their low cost and wide availability. Phthalates are endocrine disruptors that may affect children's growth and development and increase health risks such as asthma and allergies.
To help consumers identify potential safety issues in children's sandals sold online, Toxics-Free Corps has conducted a survey on the phthalate content of PVC children's sandals for three consecutive years. In March 2025, the team, referring to the GB 30585-2014 "Technical Specification for Safety of Children's Shoes" standard, used "children's sandals PVC" as the keyword and purchased the top 10 samples from five platforms—JD.com, Taobao, Pinduoduo, Douyin Mall, and Kuaishou Mall—ranked by sales volume, totaling 50 pairs. Infant shoe sizes were selected, and the samples were sent to a qualified third-party institution for phthalate content testing.
The investigation found that:
Half of the samples exceeded the phthalates limit
The investigation revealed that 25 out of 50 pairs of samples exceeded the limit for phthalates, resulting in an overall exceedance rate of 50%. Among the exceeding samples, the average exceedance was 365 times the limit, with the highest exceeding it by 509 times, involving substances such as DBP, DEHP, and DINP. Notably, some of the exceeding products had very high sales volumes; 13 out of the 25 exceeding samples had sales exceeding 10,000 units, and one product exceeding the limit by 496 times even had sales exceeding 1 million units, indicating that high sales volume does not equate to high safety.
Figure 1: Phthalate exceedance rate in PVC children's sandals sampled in 2025 (by platform)
Three-no products remain a major risk factor
Labeling issues are also prominent. Of the 25 samples that exceeded standards, 20 were unlabeled, accounting for 80%. These products lack essential information such as product name, manufacturer, production address, applicable standards, and certificate of conformity, classifying them as "Three-no products". This not only violates relevant laws and regulations but also makes quality traceability and liability determination more difficult. Consumers should avoid purchasing children's sandals without labels, production information, or applicable standards.
Image: A Three-no product with phthalates exceeding the standard by 509 times.
Low price is not a reason to break the rules
Price comparisons show that the average price of compliant samples was 37 yuan, while the average price of exceedance samples was 16 yuan, indicating that compliant products were generally more expensive. However, some compliant products could still be found in the 0-25 yuan price range, demonstrating that compliant production does not necessarily mean high costs. Manufacturers can achieve safety and compliance by using qualified raw materials, optimizing processes, and strengthening raw material testing, rather than relying on high-risk, low-priced raw materials.
Figure 2: Price comparison of phthalate compliant and exceedance samples of PVC children's sandals in 2025.
Three years of changes: the exceedance rate has decreased, but the problem has not yet been solved.
Looking at the three-year trend, the overall phthalate exceedance rate in children's sandals has shown a downward trend. Compared with 2024, the overall exceedance rate in 2025 decreased by 32 percentage points, indicating that platform sampling, social supervision, and local regulation are playing a role. The exceedance rates on Taobao, Douyin Mall, and Kuaishou Mall have decreased significantly compared to the previous two years, especially on Taobao, which dropped from 90% in 2024 to 20% in 2025; however, the exceedance rate on JD.com has rebounded, and the problem on Pinduoduo remains serious.
However, the problem of unlabeled products has not been significantly improved. From 2023 to 2025, 50 pairs of products were sampled each year, and the number of unlabeled products was 29 pairs, 22 pairs, and 29 pairs respectively. The proportion has remained at a high level for a long time, indicating that "Three-no products" are still a key issue in the safety management of children's sandals.
Figure 3: Comparison of phthalate exceedance rates in random inspections of PVC children's sandals from 2023 to 2025 (by platform)
Our suggestion: Platforms, enterprises and regulators jointly monitor
Toxics-Free Corps suggests that e-commerce platforms should strengthen random inspections of high-risk categories such as PVC children's sandals, strictly verify the qualifications of merchants and product labels, and require merchants to display physical labels on product pages; for consumers who purchase Three-no products, unconditional returns should be supported and reporting channels should be readily available.
Brands and manufacturers should strictly abide by the mandatory standards for children's shoes, strengthen testing of raw materials for limited substances, and promptly recall non-compliant products.
Market regulators should strengthen oversight of the implementation of mandatory standards for children's shoes, continue to conduct random inspections of children's shoes, and intensify efforts to combat Three-no products.
The safety of children's products should not only rely on consumers to "keep their eyes open", but also requires platforms, companies and regulatory authorities to work together to ensure that every pair of sandals on children's feet can withstand safety inspections.
