144 shops selling substandard baby milk bottles raided

In a recent special operation conducted island-wide by the Consumer Affairs Authority, one hundred and forty-four shops selling substandard baby milk bottles and reusable plastic bottles were raided. During this series of sudden raids, investigating officers took into custody approximately one thousand four hundred such illegal items as case exhibits.

Under this program launched last week, inspections of sales outlets have been initiated covering various parts of the island. Ninety-six locations were inspected regarding reusable plastic bottles used for carrying drinking water, and it was verified whether they conformed to SLS 1616 standards. Additionally, forty-eight shops selling baby milk bottles made from polymer raw materials falling under SLS 1306 standards were also inspected.

New laws have been introduced to ensure the quality of these consumer goods through Directive No. 96, as stated in the Extraordinary Gazette No. 2456/42 issued on October 01, 2025. According to these orders, which are scheduled to come into effect from April 01, 2026, the regulations of the Sri Lanka Standards Institution must be strictly applied to the relevant products.

According to these legal provisions, it is mandatory for the aforementioned locally manufactured bottles to bear the SLS certification mark issued by the Sri Lanka Standards Institution. Merely stating that a product conforms to standards is not legal; the SLS logo must be displayed as per Directive No. 96. However, while it is not a mandatory requirement for imported goods to have the SLS logo, it is essential that they obtain approval under the Sri Lanka Standards Institution's import inspection scheme before being sold.

Concurrently with these raids, a comprehensive supply chain investigation has also been launched to trace the origin of goods by examining suppliers' bills and invoices. For this reason, the Authority advises consumers to check whether locally produced items have the SLS logo and other product information correctly displayed when purchasing them. Furthermore, the Consumer Affairs Authority has instructed all traders, suppliers, and importers to ensure that local products have obtained SLS certification and imported products have received import inspection approval before releasing goods to the market.