China's Ministry of Health on Wednesday banned a range of German-made hygiene and skincare products under the brand "Bubchen" from the Chinese market.

The 16 Bubchen products were imported and sold under licenses granted to other products, said a ministry statement.

The health authority had not granted any license to the products, the statement said.

The dealers were asked to stop sales of the listed products and retrieve those already sold, the statement said.

"The importer and distributor of these products will be penalized according to the law," it said.

A Chinese website on Bubchen products has been founded by a company named Beijing Sensensen Trade Co. Ltd., which claimed to be the general agent of Bubchen products in China.

The products listed on the website are mainly for infants and pregnant women.
 
(Xinhua News Agency August 2, 2007)