"EU must show its teeth"

WKÖ calls for stricter controls for Temu, Shein

The WKO criticizes the control density of the 30,000 Temu parcels arriving in Austria every day as being too low.

(Bild: Valerio Rosati - stock.adobe.com, Which?, Krone KREATIV)

Chinese online retailers such as Temu or Shein should be subject to stricter controls than before. This was demanded by Rainer Trefelik, Trade Chairman of the WKO, at a panel discussion on Monday. The current random checks on around 30,000 Temu parcels that come to Austria every day are too low and unfair to Austrian retailers, he said.

Andrea Reuter from the customs office, on the other hand, argued that systematic customs controls were not possible. According to Werner Wutscher (New Venture Scouting), 95 percent of toys imported from China do not meet European standards.

"The EU must show its teeth" in order to create fairness between Chinese platforms and Austrian retailers, especially when it comes to enforcing the law, says Wutscher. Consumers also need to be made aware of the influence they have with their consumption and what the consequences of this are. Trefelik believes that educating young people is particularly important here, as they order more frequently from such retailers.

Corporations dodge waste costs
The authorized representative of Altstoff Recycling Austria, Reinhard Pinter, sees a further imbalance in terms of waste costs. The packaging from the numerous parcels becomes waste that has to be collected, sorted and recycled. The costs for this are currently paid by those companies that are part of a collection and recycling system.

The two Chinese companies are not part of such a system, although their waste also goes into the container and is paid for by the others. According to Pinter, this is also reflected in the product prices.