Several Irish retailers have contacted MummyPages directly in the last 24 hours with confirmation that the brands of loom bands and charms on sale in their stores are safe.
Yesterday we revealed that some loom charms on the market may contain extremely high levels of phthalates – a group of chemicals which are suspected to be carcinogenic.
Smyths, Argos and Claire’s Accessories have all stated that their brands have been tested for compliance with EU regulations and that their loom charms and bands contain either no phthalates or an amount that is under the legally allowed limit.
EU regulations specify that plastic products, such as loom charms and bands, can only contain 0.1% of phthalates by weight.
One retailer, bargain store Dealz, has yet to respond.
Below you can find a table listing the specific brands currently for sale online from each retailer, and whether or not they have been confirmed to MummyPages as safe for use.
Update 15th August 2014: Toymaster Ireland have contacted MummyPages to say that, "Toymaster, who have 33 stores across Ireland, only stock product that is compliant with EU regulations." Dealz have also been in touch to say that they "have taken the findings regarding loom bands very seriously and as a result are investigating with suppliers than none of the products stocked contain phthalates... Test results are expected back early next week."
