Oxy Reckitt Benckiser, which distributed and sold humidifier disinfectants harmful to humans, has been slow to compensate victims of the environmental disaster. However, it has sparked controversy by requesting media outlets to delete articles from 25 years ago that announced the launch of those harmful products.
Oxy noted that the request to delete the articles was made following a request from the Fair Trade Commission. However, the Fair Trade Commission has stated that it never made such a request.
On the 20th, according to industry sources and the Fair Trade Commission, Oxy Reckitt Benckiser recently sent an email requesting the deletion of articles announcing the launch of solid humidifier disinfectants. This article was written in December 2000 when the company announced the product launch. The article includes the phrase, "Oxy introduced a solid form of humidifier disinfectant that shows sterilizing and cleaning effects when placed in the humidifier's water tank. Priced at 7,000 won each."
In the email, Oxy stated, "Although a significant amount of time has passed since the article was published, the humidifier disinfectant incident has emerged as a major social issue, and many victims and related parties have suffered as a result." It continued, "As the sale of humidifier disinfectants is now legally prohibited, we request the deletion of the article about the release of the solid form of humidifier disinfectant."
Oxy's solid humidifier disinfectant was launched in December 2000. Sales were halted shortly after its harmfulness became known in 2011. A representative from Oxy Reckitt Benckiser explained during a phone call with CHOSUNBIZ, "The department related to the Fair Trade Commission's labeling and advertising law has made demands to remove articles regarding the launch of this product."
However, the Fair Trade Commission has stated that it never made such a request. A Fair Trade Commission official said, "We only verified whether banned products were still being sold due to complaints about the humidifier disinfectant and did not request Oxy to delete any articles about the harmful products."
There have been several instances in the past where Oxy and the Fair Trade Commission have issued contradictory statements. Oxy claimed it was unaware of the harmfulness immediately after the humidifier disinfectant issue arose, but the Fair Trade Commission contradicted this.
According to a decision issued by the Fair Trade Commission in August 2012 regarding "Oxy Reckitt Benckiser's unfair labeling practices," the Fair Trade Commission stated that Oxy had received safety data indicating that polyhexamethylene guanidine (PHMG), one of the ingredients used in the humidifier disinfectants, was harmful to humans when ingested or inhaled, implying that Oxy was aware of the dangers.
The humidifier disinfectant incident is regarded as the worst environmental disaster, with 5,828 officially recognized victims as of the end of last year. However, Oxy, as a distributor and manufacturer, has consistently stated that it was completely unaware of the disinfectant's harmfulness at the time of production and could not acknowledge any correlation with respiratory diseases. Fourteen years have passed since the harmfulness issue emerged in 2011, yet discussions on compensation for victims have not taken place. Although an agreement was reached in 2021 to resolve the issue, two companies, including Oxy, did not agree to the proposed settlement.
According to the victim compensation settlement plan, nine corporations, including Oxy, are required to compensate victims with approximately 924 billion won. Oxy is responsible for 52% of the fund necessary for implementing the settlement plan, but it has refused the plan, arguing that the distribution ratio among companies is unfair.
From 1995 to 2000, Oxy Reckitt Benckiser sold 750,000 units of the humidifier disinfectant "Oxy Ssak Ssak Humidifier Buddy" containing benzalkonium chloride (BKC), and from 2001 to 2011, 4.15 million units of "Oxy Ssak Ssak New Humidifier Buddy," which changed its ingredients to polyhexamethylene guanidine (PHMG). It is reported that 89% of those recognized as victims of humidifier disinfectants used Oxy products.