Another Chinese domestic beauty brand may have been “accidentally targeted” due to EGF.
Recently, according to CCTV’s program Economic Half Hour, reporters submitted several popular cosmetics for testing. The results showed that two face masks under KANS were detected with the banned cosmetic ingredient epidermal growth factor (EGF).
As a brand that has topped Douyin’s beauty charts for nearly 20 consecutive months, the report immediately thrust KANS into the spotlight, attracting widespread attention both inside and outside the industry.
In response, KANS issued an official statement, stating that EGF was not detected in the test reports of the two products in question. The brand also emphasized that “the submitted samples did not contain any added epidermal growth factor.”
It is worth noting that this is not the first time a well-known brand has been “exposed” for containing EGF in the industry, but previous instances were all denied by the brands. So why are beauty brands repeatedly “accidentally targeted” because of EGF?
KANS Issues Test Report in Response: Products Do Not Contain EGF
Recently, according to CCTV’s program Economic Half Hour, reporters submitted several popular cosmetics on the market to qualified third-party testing institutions. The results showed that KANS’s Plumping & Firming Essence Mask tested positive for epidermal growth factor (EGF) at a concentration of 0.07 pg/g, while another product, KANS Brightening & Whitening Mask, contained EGF at a level as high as 3.21 pg/g. The news quickly drew widespread attention within the industry.
According to multiple cosmetic R&D engineers, EGF is primarily used in the medical field, with clinical applications for topical treatment of burns, wounds, and surgical healing, accelerating epidermal growth in grafts. Due to its large molecular weight, EGF is difficult to absorb under normal skin barrier conditions. If the skin barrier is compromised, it may cause other potential safety concerns. For reasons of efficacy and safety, epidermal growth factor (EGF) is not allowed to be used as a cosmetic ingredient.
It is worth noting that since 2019, EGF has been explicitly listed by China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) in the Prohibited Ingredients List of Used Cosmetic Raw Materials, and its addition to cosmetics is strictly forbidden.
So, do KANS products actually contain EGF?
CHAILEEDO immediately sought confirmation from KANS, and the brand presented SGS test reports for the two products in question, showing that EGF was not detected in either product.
In this statement, KANS also solemnly promised that “none of KANS’s products contain human epidermal growth factor (EGF).”
Unscientific Testing Methods Lead to Multiple Brands Being “Accidentally Targeted”
In fact, KANS is not the first brand to be reported for containing EGF. According to CHAILEEDO’s incomplete statistics, in recent years, at least ten brands have been exposed for allegedly having EGF in their products.
A typical example occurred in April this year, when Elephant News published a series of investigative reports on its official website and platforms like Douyin. The reports stated that a consumer in Xi’an experienced facial hardening and swelling after using the product “Kefumei Recombinant (Human-like) Collagen Repair Dressing G-type”. After paying for independent testing, the product was found to contain epidermal growth factor (EGF). At the same time, the report noted that expanded testing of more than ten popular products was carried out, revealing that products from several leading brands, including L’Oréal, La Roche-Posay, SK-II, Dr. Arrivo, and Winona, were also reportedly detected with EGF.
However, all of these brands declared that their products undergo strict safety supervision during production and do not contain epidermal growth factor (EGF). Many brands also provided testing reports to prove their “innocence.”
It is noteworthy that following the “EGF incident” in April, the China Fragrance, Flavor and Cosmetic Industry Association (CFFA) issued a statement clarifying that, globally, there is currently no commercially available standard kit for detecting EGF in cosmetics. The association further pointed out that the ELISA method used by media and consumers during the April incident carries a certain risk of false positives, and its conclusions need to be cross-validated with more precise techniques such as mass spectrometry, rather than being taken as the sole evidence.
The CFFA emphasized that products cannot be judged to contain EGF based solely on ELISA tests. “ELISA is widely used in medicine, food safety, and other fields, but its reliability highly depends on factors such as the kit’s specificity and sensitivity, sample type, and operator handling.”
Therefore, the reason why multiple well-known brands, including KANS, were detected with EGF is essentially due to unscientific testing methods, and the results are not reliable.
To a certain extent, these brands that were once exposed for containing EGF were all “accidentally targeted.” KANS is no exception in this case.
The Industry Urgently Needs Scientific Methods for EGF Detection
As mentioned above, the reason why well-known brands are repeatedly caught up in “EGF incidents” lies in the lack of standardized scientific methods for detecting EGF.
Previously, an experienced cosmetic R&D professional told CHAILEEDO that EGF is generally detected using ELISA or LC-MS methods. However, it should be noted that EGF-ELISA kits designed for purified samples such as serum or cell lysates typically have a limit of detection (LOD) of 1–10 pg/mL. Cosmetics, on the other hand, contain complex matrices such as surfactants and preservatives, which interfere with antigen-antibody binding, leading to higher detection limits and a surge in false positives. This is the key reason why the method is unsuitable for determining banned ingredients in cosmetics. For LC-MS/MS, potential interference from isomers or background ions also needs to be considered.
“EGF is already a banned cosmetic ingredient, and it isn’t cheap, so it’s highly questionable that so many brands were detected,” said another industry insider who wished to remain anonymous. They added, “Moreover, these are leading domestic and international brands, which objectively maintain high production standards. The likelihood of EGF actually being present in their products is very low. Adding banned ingredients brings no commercial value—it’s a pointless and risky action.”
Another industry professional, referring to the 3.21 pg/g EGF detected in KANS’s Brightening & Whitening Mask, explained, “At such low concentrations, EGF wouldn’t have any effect, so there is no reason for brands to deliberately add it. It’s also unlikely to come from raw materials, because EGF is a large molecule composed of 53 amino acids, not an impurity, and therefore would not be present as a carryover from raw materials. Typically, banned ingredients carried over from raw materials are impurities, not functional biomolecules like EGF.”
It is worth noting that in April this year, the China Fragrance, Flavor and Cosmetic Industry Association (CFFA) specifically clarified the unit picogram (pg), stating that “1 picogram equals 10⁻¹² grams, or one trillionth of a gram.”
The CCTV report mentioned that EGF content in KANS Brightening & Whitening Mask reached 3.21 pg/g, which converts to a more familiar unit as 0.00000000321 mg/g.
On the other hand, repeated incidents of well-known brands being caught up in EGF controversies can affect consumer confidence and concerns about cosmetic safety. Industry professionals have therefore consistently called for the establishment of a scientific and authoritative standard for EGF detection.
Undoubtedly, establishing clear, unified, and scientific standards for testing functional cosmetic ingredients is a shield for protecting consumer rights, a guideline for regulating corporate behavior, and a cornerstone for the long-term high-quality development of China’s cosmetics industry and gaining global trust. It can be anticipated that the industry may use the “EGF incidents” as a starting point to pool expertise and efforts, jointly promoting the Chinese cosmetics industry to operate steadily under scientifically-based regulation.
