A factsheet for Australian toy importers and traders

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A factsheet for Australian toy importers and traders

By Ellie Li and Elizabeth O’Brien, Global Lead Advice & Support Service (GLASS), Australia

“I don’t want to poison Aussie kids with heavy metals in toys” AGREE DISAGREE
“I don’t want to pay a million dollar fine if ACCC happens to buy my toys off the shelf in 2010 and they fail the toy tox tests at NMI” AGREE DISAGREE

EOB & StormtrooperToy Fair 2009
Photo by Michael Nayda, Thermo Scientific.

If you AGREE with both the above statements, then this factsheet is for you! It was created for distribution by Elizabeth O’Brien (pictured wearing “Shut the Door on Lead Poisoning” t-shirt, alongside Star Wars Stormtrooper) from the Thermo Scientific (Niton XRF) stand on Saturday 21st and Sunday 22nd March 2009, at the Australian Toy Hobby and Nursery Fair in Melbourne, run by the Australian Toy Association (ATA).

The ATA’s Exhibitor Bulletin, Day 3 - Sunday 22nd March 2009, noted:

“Yesterday you would have received an ACCC Product safety bulletin [March 2009]. One of the articles therein referred to lead in children’s toys and the new mandatory standard effective from 1 January 2010.

“Today international lead expert Elizabeth O’Brien of The LEAD Group will be at the Thermo Scientific stand (i17) to answer all your queries about lead. A free toy ‘tox’ screen will also be available.”

WHAT TO DO IF YOUR TOYS FAIL THE XRF TEST

How can I be sure about the concentration of leachable heavy metals in my toys?

The XRF machine is a very convenient and fast tool that enables instant detection of all the 8 heavy metals in the Australian Toy Standard AS/NZS ISO 8124.3:2003, allowing thousands of toys to be tested for the time and cost that a lab would take to test hundreds of toys. But if a toy or toy component fails the XRF screening test for any particular heavy metal, then you need to send it to a qualified laboratory for the toy tox test for that particular heavy metal, to find out exactly how much of the metal leaches from the toy and whether it exceeds the Australian Toy Standard. In other words, a toy can fail the XRF test but pass the lab test, so confirmatory lab testing is essential on those toys/parts that fail the XRF test.

In order to comply with Australian standards, ACCC (Australian Competition and Consumer Commission) stipulates that toy testing can be done at any suitably qualified laboratory. This can be either through a lab that is NATA (National Association of Testing Authorities)-accredited for the particular test, or a lab that is NATA-accredited for related tests and which offers toy testing according to the toy standard methodology. The following is a list of relevant lab contacts for your information.

If your toys are still at the factory overseas, you can organise testing in one of the SGS labs overseas,
accredited for the toy tox test, by contacting:

Nathan Temple
SGS Australia Pty Ltd
480 Princes Highway, Noble Park, VIC 3174, Australia
Phone: (03) 9790-3479; Mobile: 0410-505-381; Fax: (03) 9701-0988
Email: nathan.temple@sgs.com; Website: www.au.sgs.com

Eg, CNAS’s (China National Accreditation Service for Conformity Assessment) Directory of Accredited Laboratories at http://219.238.178.49/AccSearchEN.asp?Class=L lists:

SGS-CSTC Standards Technical Services Co., Ltd. Shenzhen Branch Toys Lab, Futian District, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China; ACCREDITED by CNAS for AS/NZS ISO8124.3:2003; ISO8124-3: 1997; GB 6675-2003 clause 4.3 - Safety of toys - Migration of certain elements.

If your toys are already in Australia, find toy tox test labs at www.nata.asn.au - eg:

1. National Measurement Institute (NMI)
1/153 Bertie Street
PORT MELBOURNE VIC 3207
www.measurement.gov.au
Contact: Ms Emma Tiberi
Phone: (03) 9644 4888; Mobile: 0413 947 990; Fax:(03) 9644 4999.

Facilities: Public testing service
ACCREDITED by NATA for Analysis of toys
Analysis by ICP-AES techniques by the methods of - AS/NZS ISO 8124.3 for the following determinations - soluble elements: Antimony; arsenic; barium; cadmium; chromium; lead; mercury; selenium.

2. Sydney West Area Health Service
DAL Public Health
Division of Analytical Laboratories
Joseph Street and Weeroona Road
LIDCOMBE NSW 2141
Contact: Mr R Angulo
Phone:(02) 9646 0222
Facilities: Conditionally available for public testing
ACCREDITED by NATA for Analysis of paint from children's toys and from buildings; Analysis by AAS (flame) techniques by in-house method TM118B; for Lead.

3. Sydney Analytical Laboratories Pty Ltd, Watertest
Sydney Chemical Testing Laboratory
1/4 Abbott Road
SEVEN HILLS NSW 2147
Contact: Mr L Smith
Phone:(02) 9838 8903
Facilities: Public testing service
ACCREDITED by NATA for Paints and related surface coatings; Chemical tests: Analysis of paint scrapings; Analysis by AAS techniques by in-house method A8; for Lead.

See “Product safety bulletin October 2007: Banned lead in children's toys” at www.accc.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/800643 regarding the current ban.

Look out for the suppliers’ guide published on the ACCC website prior to the start of the mandatory toy standard in January 2010. See www.accc.gov.au/

Don’t put off testing your toys any longer!!

Ask about The LEAD Group’s charity rates for bulk toy testing through Sydney Analytical Laboratories or by XRF. We also have our DIY-sampling lead safe test kits available for sale to parents, day care centre managers, retailers, etc, who wish to test the concentration of lead and other heavy metals around their house/ centre/ /workplace and within their toys. See www.lead.org.au/clp/products/Do-It-Yourself-
Lead-Safe-Test-Kits-20070526.html

The LEAD Group can rent an XRF Analyser from Thermo Scientific and screen large batches of toys. Please let us know if you are interested in XRF toy tox testing!