Two further children’s sand kits widely available across the UK have been pulled from sale after a consumer group discovered they contained asbestos. The investigation by Which? follows a series of products – many of them children’s toys – being withdrawn from shelves due to asbestos contamination.
One of the two latest recalls was marketed as a Montessori sand art tray, sold via Amazon Marketplace and TikTok Shop. Designed for hands-on learning to develop fine motor skills, the kit encourages children to draw in the sand using either the pencils supplied or their fingers.
Testing by Which? revealed that the sand contained the banned substance tremolite asbestos, a dangerous naturally occurring mineral that can become airborne and trigger severe lung diseases if inhaled, even at minimal levels of exposure.
The International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified all forms of asbestos as carcinogenic to humans. Any products containing asbestos, including trace amounts, are forbidden from sale in the UK.
A second sand art tray examined by Which? was purchased from TikTok Shop and was also found listed by three separate sellers on Amazon Marketplace, reports <a href=”https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/sand-kits-pulled-from-shelves-37229598″>the Mirror</a>.
EMBARGOED TO 0001 MONDAY JUNE 1Undated handout photo issued by Which? of a GL Style Sand Bottle Art Heart or Stars set, which has been removed from sale after a consumer group discovered that it contained asbestos. The testing by Which? follows numerous products – many of them children’s toys – recalled from shelves due to asbestos contamination. One of the latest two recalls was marketed as a Montessori sand art tray, and was being sold on Amazon Marketplace and TikTok Shop. Issue date: Monday June 1, 2026. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Which?/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder. (Image: Which?/PA Wire)
Which? revealed that the set remained available on both platforms until May, despite the very same product having been subject to a recall by the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) in March owing to asbestos contamination.
The OPSS has since updated the original recall notice to incorporate Amazon and TikTok Shop. Which? researchers also discovered tremolite asbestos in the GL Style Sand Bottle Art Heart or Stars set, purchased from Asda and bearing the brand name RMS International Limited. However, the watchdog also identified what appeared to be the identical kit available on eBay from three private sellers.
More than 39 recall notices have been issued by the OPSS since November concerning asbestos-contaminated sand products. The matter has also resulted in the closure of schools and parks, most recently in North East England. It is understood the affected toys contain sand sourced from particular quarries in China, where naturally occurring asbestos is present.
Sue Davies, head of consumer rights policy at Which?, said: “It is outrageous that online marketplaces are selling products which may expose children to asbestos, especially when some of these products had already been recalled by the OPSS. Seemingly innocent items like toys and craft kits can have serious health consequences if there are not proper checks to make sure they comply with safety laws.
File image, popular children’s toy kinetic sand (Image: Getty)
“The Government has published proposals that would require online marketplaces to exercise due care in preventing, identifying and removing dangerous products sold through their platforms, an area where regulation is currently far too limited.
“Ministers now urgently need to introduce legislation that makes these duties sufficiently robust and properly enforceable. The longer the Government delays taking action, the greater the risk that more dangerous products will reach consumers.”
A spokesman for Amazon said: “Customer safety is our top priority and we are taking this issue very seriously. We are in the process of removing all products in this category across our store while we investigate further, and as a result the highlighted items have been removed.”
Children playing with yellow kinetic sand and colourful plastic moulds (Image: Getty)
Asda confirmed it launched a full product recall as soon as it was notified that the product had failed testing, urging customers who had purchased the product to cease using it immediately and return it to their nearest store for a full refund.
A spokeswoman for eBay said: “We swiftly removed the items identified by Which? and are conducting further sweeps to identify similar listings.”
TikTok confirmed that the product uncovered during the investigation had already been taken down from TikTok Shop.