On September 3, 2026, APR announced that officially distributed Medicube products tested negative for Sudan IV, a banned industrial dye.
The alarm started in Singapore, where a regulator found trace amounts of the dye in a jar of Medicube PDRN Pink Collagen Capsule Cream sold by an unauthorized shop.
If a headline made you check your own jar, the question is simple: which bottles were clean, and which were not.
This post walks through the test result, where the flagged jar actually came from, and what to check if you bought Medicube overseas.
Contents
- medicube banned dye: what the clean test result changes
- Where the flagged jar came from
- Why ‘unauthorized seller’ raises the fake question
- What Sudan IV is and why it is banned
- How to check your Medicube
medicube banned dye: what the clean test result changes
APR submitted products from its Singapore entity to an accredited local laboratory, at the request of Singapore’s Health Sciences Authority.
The tests found no Sudan IV in any of them.
On August 26 the authority notified APR that the sales and supply suspension on the product had been lifted.
From the lab test to the lift, the process took 23 days.
Only the product sold at the unauthorized shop was recalled; officially distributed stock was never recalled.
| Official channels (Olive Young, Medicube official mall, Medicube Global) | Tested negative — no recall |
|---|---|
| Venus Beauty Pte. Ltd. (Singapore, unauthorized seller) | Trace Sudan IV found — product recalled |
| Unofficial third-party shops elsewhere | Not covered by the negative test result |
Where the flagged jar came from
The sample that tested positive came from Venus Beauty Pte.
Ltd.
APR says that seller was never supplied or exported to by the company, meaning it sat outside the official distribution network.
The two batches the authority flagged — 2E122I.2E117I and 2E191G.2E193G — have no record of official shipment or export to Singapore.
APR is still tracing how that jar reached the local market.
For a buyer, the practical line is this: the clean test result covers official channels, and does not vouch for anything sold through other shops.
Why ‘unauthorized seller’ raises the fake question
Because the flagged batches appear nowhere in APR’s export records, industry observers say the jar could be counterfeit.
That possibility fits a wider pattern from the same month.
In July, customs at Timisoara airport in Romania seized about 100 suspected fake units of the same capsule cream.
Also in July, authorities in Guangzhou, China seized more than 6,000 imitation items across six Medicube products — roughly 60 times the Romania haul.
Popular K-beauty items are being counterfeited at scale, and third-party reseller shops are where fakes surface.
What Sudan IV is and why it is banned
Sudan IV, also called Scarlet Red, is an industrial synthetic red dye classified by the IARC as possibly carcinogenic.
Korea has banned it as a cosmetics raw material since 2010, so no legitimate Korean-made product should contain it.
The concern is not theoretical: Korea’s drug safety agency previously ordered a recall of two lip products after the dye was traced to a Singapore raw-material maker, following a sweep of 567 products that used the same material.
Only 2 of those 567 — about 0.35% — contained it, but the recall shows what happens when the dye does appear.
How to check your Medicube
First, check where you bought it.
Purchases through Olive Young, the official Medicube mall, or Medicube’s official global channels fall under the clean test result.
Second, look at the batch code on the bottom of the jar; the flagged batches were 2E122I.2E117I and 2E191G.2E193G, and neither was ever officially shipped to Singapore.
If you bought from Venus Beauty, your jar belongs to the recalled group, not the cleared one.
If you bought from an unofficial shop elsewhere, no published test covers that unit, and counterfeits of this exact product were seized in two countries in July alone.
👉 APR’s announcement that officially distributed products tested negative (Korea Herald)
👉 Details on the flagged batches, the unauthorized seller, and the recall (Sidae Economy)
👉 What Scarlet Red is and Korea’s earlier lip product recalls (Cosmorning)
Related posts
📎 Olive Young Sephora Singapore: 20 brands, 180 products, and where to start
Sources
- APR’s Medicube tests negative for banned dye tied to unautho (koreaherald.com)
- No dedicated buyer-verification guide found within 6-month w (sidae.com)
- MFDS recalled 2 lip products after Taiwan detection; raw mat (cosmorning.com)
Dates and details to keep on your radar
- APR says it is still verifying how the flagged jar reached the unauthorized seller; any follow-up announcement is worth checking before drawing conclusions.
- A recall or test result from one country does not automatically apply to stock sold elsewhere — match the seller and the batch code, not just the brand name.
- The numbers in this post reflect reporting through September 6, 2026; check for newer statements before relying on them.
FAQ
Q. I bought my Medicube at Olive Young — is it affected?
No. Products submitted by APR’s official Singapore entity tested negative for Sudan IV, and officially distributed products were not recalled. The recall applied only to the jar sold at the unauthorized seller.
Q. Was the flagged Medicube fake?
That has not been confirmed. The flagged batches have no official export record to Singapore, which is why counterfeit possibility is being discussed, but APR’s verification of the sample’s route is still ongoing.
Q. What is Sudan IV?
An industrial synthetic red dye, also known as Scarlet Red. It is classified as possibly carcinogenic and has been banned in Korean cosmetics since 2010.
Bought your jar overseas? Check the retailer list above and stick to official Olive Young or Medicube channels before opening it.
#medicubebanneddye #medicubefake #k-beautyauthenticity #sudaniv #medicubepdrnpinkcollagencream #oliveyoungmedicube #counterfeitcosmetics
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