PRC WORKERS PAID TO TEST FAKE VIAGRA PILLS QUIT, CLAIMS "TOO MUCH HARD WORK"

Too much of a good thing can be bad.

Take the experience of some employees of a counterfeit sexual drugs company in the People's Republic of China (PRC) for example.

Employees were told to test fake Viagra on themselves, which would help manufacturers decide how much real sildenafil (the main chemical that aids in countering erectile dysfunction) the company could mix with cornflour to save costs.

Employees who were married and lived within a short vicinity were told to take the pill home to test it while sleeping with their wives. Those from out of town were given money to sleep with prostitutes.

"Some workers went home to test it, but for out-of-town workers, we would arrange for them to go to massage parlours and we would give them reimbursements," one worker told a local PRC newspaper.

Initially, the drugs were made with 50% real sildenafil and 50% cornflour, but the sildenafil had to be increased by 50% after the test subjects reported mixed results.

"The staff were very happy to test the fake medication at the beginning, but soon became annoyed when the pill-testing became too much hard work," another anonymous employee said.

Trade in illegal sex drugs is rampant in China, with a report from the South China Morning Post stating that about 1.5 million units of counterfeit sex drugs were seized in Guangdong province in September this year.

Illegal sex drugs bearing PRC names have also made their way to Singapore, with illegal peddlers touting their wares in darkly lit allies along Geylang and other areas where prostitution is tolerated.