The Ghana Standards Authority (GSA) has shut down 5A Homes, a Chinese-owned manufacturing company located at Dawhenya in the Greater Accra Region, for allegedly producing substandard mattresses.
The closure forms part of the Ghana Standards Authority’s second day of operations, aimed at clamping down on companies producing inferior products on the Ghanaian market.
Speaking during a media engagement after the operation on Tuesday, May 19, the Regional Manager of the Ghana Standards Authority, Clement Kubati, stated that the exercise is targeted at tracing and removing all substandard products from the market to help reduce the human and environmental impact on Ghanaians.
“That’s why I’m saying we’re going to make sure that we will continue with our surveillance. The information that we picked before we came here, we’re going to continue. I mean, as you can see, the exercise that we did yesterday [May 18] has prompted this incident. We are going to make sure to reinforce it with our power locks and seal. Simple as that.
He added, “These are mattresses that have been manufactured. It’s not a month or two. This is just recent manufacturing. These are substandard mattresses that are being manufactured with low-standard material. So we’re going to continue.
“We’ll try to see what we can do in the market at the retail site. But some of them have found their way into a retail market.”
Two Chinese managers of 5A Homes were arrested for allegedly producing substandard products in the country and flouting regulations governing fair trade practices.
On May 18, the Ghana Standards Authority shut down some mattress manufacturing companies at Afienya near Tema in the Greater Accra Region for allegedly producing mattresses with substandard materials.
The companies, which include Yin Yuan Jia Limited, Mooda Limited, Hue Sheng Company, producers of Kalusini mattresses and Asano service, were accused of using polystyrene instead of the approved polyurethane in the production of mattresses.
Polystyrene is commonly used as a protective packaging material for electronic gadgets and household appliances such as refrigerators, air conditioners, ovens, microwaves, vacuum cleaners, and blenders.
