Urgent product recall for three children’s toys over asbestos fears | UK | News

Three ‘Flexible’ toys have been recalled amid fears that the sand the products are filled with may be contaminated with asbestos. HGL Stretchy Sand Monster Truck, Scrunchems Stretchies Sleepy Dino Toy and HGL Stretchy Sand Pig have been recalled by the Office of Product Safety and Standards (OPSS).

Notices uploaded to the regulator’s website say the products may pose a “health risk” as they may be contaminated with “small amounts” of banned substances. All three toys are said to originate from China and are distributed by One For Fun Limited. Asbestos causes mesothelioma, a cancer that usually begins in the layers of tissue lining the lungs. In each notification, owners of the three toys are advised to “immediately” stop using the products and keep them out of reach of children.

OPSS also published instructions on how to properly dispose of toys.

If the toy is undamaged, it states that owners should “place it in a heavy-duty plastic bag, double-tape it securely, label it clearly, and store it in a safe place out of reach of children.”

If the toy is damaged and the sand inside is accessible, users are recommended to wear gloves and a mask and clean the areas where the product is used with wet cloths.

Toy owners should then double the sand, gloves, mask and cloths.

“Keep children and other people away from areas where sand is used until the area is clean,” the statement reads.

It adds that toys should be disposed of with general household waste or returned to a store specified by the retailer.

The toys have been withdrawn from the market by One For Fun Limited and recalled from users.

In a statement to the Press Association, One for Fun chief executive David Mordecai said: “We are aware of recent global reports regarding the presence of traces of asbestos in sand used in certain consumer products.

“This situation has affected many toy companies around the world.

“As a precaution, we immediately carried out independent testing across our full range of sand-filled products.

“Although current safety standards (EN71) do not require asbestos testing, our investigations found that three of our products contained trace amounts of contamination.

“These products have been withdrawn from the market.

“We take product safety extremely seriously and as a result we have discontinued the use of sand as a filler in all our current and future products.

“We remain committed to the highest safety standards and will continue to monitor and review our materials and processes accordingly.”