A number of products sold on Temu contain dangerously high levels of lead, a new documentary has claimed - just one of several shocking revelations it unearthed about the budget online marketplace.
'The Truth about Temu', the latest episode of the British current affairs programme Dispatches, has investigated the shopping app and its heavily discounted prices - unveiling a series of concerning insights into the marketplace.
Like Ali Express and Shein, Temu is a Chinese-owned e-commerce giant tapping into the western market via thousands of suppliers, but no physical stores. In countries like Aotearoa - where retail prices are becoming increasingly high - the allure of a good bargain can be too good to pass up, with Temu offering a plethora of goods at often shockingly low prices.
The platform allows China-based vendors to sell and ship directly to customers, a model that cuts out the middleman as there's no reliance on warehouses - and allays Temu itself of almost any responsibility.
Currently headquartered in Boston, Temu is owned by its parent company PDD Holdings. Although listed on the US stock market, PDD Holdings is a Chinese company - its flagship product being the Chinese e-commerce platform Pinduoduo Inc. It was founded in 2015 by billionaire businessman Colin Haung and initially based in Shanghai, but relocated its main offices last year to Dublin; a corporate tax mecca for tech giants like Meta and Apple.
Temu first went live in the US in September 2022 before launching in Canada, the UK, much of Europe, Australia and New Zealand in 2023.
But whether its prices are too good to be true has dominated discourse around the platform, with concerns often raised over its practices and the quality of the products available. Notably, a British father claimed his 11-year-old daughter, Chloe Norris, suffered third-degree burns after using nail glue bought from the site in December last year.
In the documentary, which aired on Britain's Channel 4 on May 30, investigative journalist Ellie Flynn had a range of products undergo a series of rigorous checks and tests, as per the Daily Mail.
She bought a faux silver necklace for £2.17 (NZ$4.50), a faux gold chain for £2.97 (NZ$6.20), and a children's jacket for £11.09 (NZ$23) - none of which had their materials listed on the website. The items were then sent to a toxicology lab to determine their safety.
The lab found the silver necklace contained 10 times more lead than is legally allowed in the UK, while the clasp of the gold chain contained 17mg per kg of lead. The testing also detected 26.7mg per kg of lead in another component - two times more than what is permitted in the UK.
Laurence Harwood, a professor of organic chemistry at the University of Reading, said he was "very concerned" about the results.
"When lead builds up in the body, often over months or years, even small amounts of lead can lead to serious health problems [such as] reduced sperm count, miscarriages [and] stillbirth," Harwood said.
The gold chain also contained 27 times more cadmium than is allowed in the UK; prolonged exposure to the metal has been linked to kidney damage and bone degradation, according to the documentary.
Meanwhile, the children's jacket had 82.5mg per kg of antimony - a metal that can be harmful to the eyes and skin - in its brown material and 33.6mg per kg in its faux leather.
"These are absolutely unacceptable higher levels of antimony. Over a long period of time this could have very, very bad effects on the body, in particular the nervous system," Harwood said.
"I'm very concerned [by these results]. Children younger than six-years-old are particularly vulnerable to lead poisoning and it can have all sorts of effects on mental development, physical development and it can cause neurological issues in young and old alike."
In response to the findings, Temu told Channel 4 it had conducted its own toxicology tests on the products, which did confirm "some items exceeded acceptable limits for heavy metals".
"These items have been permanently removed, and we are working with the merchants involved," the spokesperson said in the statement.
"We aim not just to meet the minimum legal requirements but to exceed them and will continue to devote significant resources to improving consumer protection."
The documentary also found the gamification elements of Temu - such as spinning prize wheels, playful aesthetics and flash sales - could pose a risk of addiction, with a brainwave technology expert noting that a test on Flynn recorded "highs of pleasure".
"Gamification elements... are inspired by activities at funfairs and shopping malls [and]... are designed to be enjoyable and provide value by allowing customers to unlock discounts," Temu told Channel 4 in response to the findings.
"As a newcomer to the UK, we have been adapting our practices... to... align with relevant regulations. We are committed to working with stakeholders to address and improve aspects of our app."
Temu has also presented customers with a £50 voucher in exchange for considerable amounts of personal data, with Sir Iain Duncan Smith, the vice chair of Britain's all-party parliamentary group of gambling related harm, branding the platform "data-harvesters".
"One of their prime purposes is to sift data, first of all collect it and then pass it on to the intelligence services," he told the documentary. "The job of the government is to defend people from that kind of theft of their personal data. The UK is slow on the pickup on this."
While Temu said its data practices are clearly stated in its terms and conditions, Flynn found the T&Cs only flashed up for a few seconds before the website redirected her to the login page. Temu later said it had fixed a bug "affecting a small number of users".
The company also claimed it "has never provided user data to the Chinese government nor would we do so if asked".
A pair of pliers Flynn purchased from the website claimed to have been certified by VDE, an institute that tests and certifies electrical products. However, Hendrick Schafer - from the testing department at VDE - said two pliers carrying its name had not been certified by the institute.
He suggested the VDE certificate had been forged, adding: "The certificate was a copy. It was illegal. They faked the original certificate and just overwrote the name on the certificate with their own names. This will definitely have consequences for this manufacturer. If the certification is not correct, the insulation of these hand-held tools are maybe not properly done [sic].
"The result could be an electric shock and in the worst case, the shock could lead to death."
Temu told Channel 4 it does not permit forgeries and will "take action against any sellers involved if such cases are found".
Carabiners also sold on the website for a fraction of the price were advertised as being certified by the International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation (UIAA). However, Nick Galpin, a UIAA Safety Commission member, told Flynn the UIAA "would not have their mark, ever, on a carabiner or certified product that did not hold a manufacturer's mark".
Medical products such as dressings and plasters that claimed to be FDA-approved were also found to be illegitimate as the FDA does not issue certificates. Temu said the products have been removed and a review of other products claiming FDA approval will be conducted.
Flynn was also able to purchase bladed tools and BB guns without a request for proof of age, to which Temu said an age-verification system has been tested and will eventually be rolled out in the UK.
In its statement to Channel 4, Temu said it takes the safety of the products sold on its platform "very seriously".
"We have a comprehensive vetting, monitoring and enforcement process to ensure that products meet platform rules and regulatory requirements. We immediately remove any product listings in question pending a review."
