Advice for suppliers of consumer products containing sand
Your responsibilities when supplying any products containing sand that may include traces of asbestos.
What’s the risk?
Since November 2025 multiple play, hobby and decorative products containing sand were found to include traces of asbestos.
Asbestos is a naturally occurring group of fibrous minerals. These occur in different mineral forms and fibre types and can vary significantly in their physical characteristics, including length, thickness, and shape. Some asbestos fibres are relatively coarse and more easily detected using microscopy, while others are extremely thin making them more difficult to identify. This means asbestos in sand is not always visible, and even very small amounts can pose a serious health risk.
All asbestos fibre types, regardless of size, have the potential to pose a health risk if fibres become airborne and are inhaled. For this reason, asbestos and asbestos containing products of any amount, are prohibited from import into New Zealand without a permit from the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA).
WorkSafe advise that all sand in a workplace that has tested positive for asbestos must be managed and removed as friable asbestos containing material. Friable asbestos containing material can easily release fibres into the air.
What to do before supplying sand products
As a business that makes or sells products – whether you're a retailer, online seller, or manufacturer – you are responsible for making sure the products you supply are safe.
Testing products containing sand for asbestos by an accredited laboratory before you import or provide for sale is essential to confirm that a product is safe and your business does not import a prohibited substance.
Recommended best-practice methods for testing the presence of asbestos in sand
Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) are electron-based laboratory techniques used to detect very small fibres that cannot be reliably identified using baseline methods. SEM and TEM are the best methods for sand as they can more reliably identify low asbestos concentrations, below 0.1%, and fine or thin asbestos fibres likely to be present in contaminated products.
TEM is a superior option as it provides unequivocal identification of asbestos through its ability to determine the crystal structure of individual fibres.
Other testing methods
Polarised Light Microscopy (PLM)
Polarised Light Microscopy (PLM) is an optical microscopy technique that uses polarised light to identify and characterise materials based on their optical properties. PLM can be suitable for materials with relatively high asbestos levels and larger fibres, such as bulk construction materials. However, it is generally not reliable when asbestos is present at low levels, less than ~0.1%, and may miss very fine or thin fibres.
Australian analytical standards AS 4964:2004 (method for the qualitative identification of asbestos in bulk samples) and AS 5370:2024 (sampling and qualitative identification of asbestos in bulk materials) widely used by NZ and overseas laboratories cannot reliably identify tremolite asbestos if present in samples. Any testing results reported under these standards as Unidentified Mineral Fibre (UMF) must be taken as positive asbestos identification or subject to more advanced analysis.
Other internationally recognised methods of PLM analysis such as HSG 248 (Asbestos: The Analysts Guide, UK) allow for Tremolite asbestos identification although with certain reporting limitations.
If you require more detail on testing methodology please contact WorkSafe New Zealand or engage with a specialist consultant in asbestos.
What to do if you have already imported products containing sand
Immediately enquire with the manufacturer to determine what testing has occurred. If testing has occurred but did not use SEM or TEM by an accredited laboratory, consider commissioning testing using this method.
If no testing has taken place, send your product for testing, applying the recommendations for testing above. Ensure to provide a representative number of samples of your product for testing. For example, test each colour of a play-sand product.
If the product is found to contain even trace amounts of asbestos, you should:
- remove the product from sale
- follow WorkSafe “Class A” guidance on management and disposal of the product
- conduct a voluntary product safety recall.
You must notify the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment when you're recalling a product.