The Ministry of Health has triggered an alert in Italy for a toy from the German Trendhaus, classified by the European Safety Gate system as a "serious risk" product. The report concerns over 30 thousand specimens and Italy is among the countries in which the product was intended to be marketed.
The carrot to look for in the bedrooms
The product is called CP HS-6 Stretchy Sand-Karotte, it is a sort of anti-stress puppet in the shape of a carrot, orange and filled with sand. The data to check is precise: brand Trendhaus, model 967176, lot 2025 = CH33287, barcode 4032722967176. It is made in China.
It is therefore not necessary to accuse any soft or sand-filled toy: the alert concerns this specific item and this lot.
The issue, however, is complicated by the fact that the Italian distributors are not identified. The Ministry therefore believes it is possible that the toy also arrived in our country through marketplaces and online purchases. And it invites you to pay particular attention because it may have been purchased not only by families, but also by schools, nurseries and other facilities frequented by children.
Asbestos in the sand
The fundamental point is to understand where the dangerous substance is located. Asbestos was not detected in the outer covering of the core, but in the sand that makes up the filling. The analyzes revealed tremolite, a mineral belonging to the amphibole asbestos group. The risk mechanism identified by the European authorities is rather simple: the toy is designed to be manipulated, pulled and deformed and can break. At that point the contaminated sand can come out and any dispersed fibers can become inhalable. Safety Gate warns that asbestos can cause cancer and has classified the product as "serious risk". It does not mean, however, that a child who simply picked up the carrot was necessarily exposed to a dangerous amount of asbestos. The risk depends on the possibility of the fibers being released and inhaled and the extent of exposure. The World Health Organization considers all forms of asbestos to be carcinogenic to humans. Exposure occurs primarily through inhalation of airborne fibers and is associated with, among other things, mesothelioma, lung cancer and other respiratory diseases. Tremolite is one of the six main forms of asbestos recognized by the WHO.
The recall started already in March
The story, in reality, begins several months before the alert that is circulating in Italy these days. On March 13, 2026, Trendhaus had already ordered the recall of Stretchy Sand-Karotte. In the document aimed at consumers, the company explained that an investigation had found that the sand contained in the product could contain asbestos and that a risk to children's health could not be completely ruled out. He then asked them not to use the toy anymore and to return it to the store where it was purchased for a refund.
The recall then spread to various European markets. In Finland, for example, the XS Toys chain had published the recall on April 1st, inviting customers to return the carrots without the need to present a receipt. Germany notified the case through Safety Gate, the rapid European system that allows member states to exchange information on dangerous non-food products. The SR/01963/26 sheet indicates the voluntary recall from end users and records a batch of 30,024 pieces. Now the problem is tracking down those who may have ended up in Italy.
What to do if the carrot is in the house
The first thing is to check the brand, model, lot and barcode. If they match, the toy should no longer be given to children. If it is still intact, you should not open it, cut it or try to see what it contains. However, the possibility of returning it to the seller must be verified. If you are unable to trace the shop or marketplace through which it was purchased, the National Asbestos Help Desk suggests contacting the competent local health authority to find out the procedures required locally. The Ministry, in fact, has not established a single national disposal procedure and has involved Regions and autonomous Provinces in managing the problem. And above all it should not simply be thrown into the dustbin, nor taken on its own initiative to a collection center without first checking the local indications.
If instead it broke
It is the scenario that requires the most attention. If the covering has been torn and the sand has ended up on the floor, the recommendation of the National Asbestos Help Desk is not to sweep it or use a normal vacuum cleaner, to avoid encouraging the dispersion of the material. You don't even have to blow on the sand or keep manipulating it. It is advisable to remove children from the area and contact the ASL, specifying that it could be the product involved in the European notification SR/01963/26. It is an important precaution precisely because the danger of asbestos is linked to the inhalation of airborne fibres. The toxicology of tremolite also shows that amphibole asbestos fibers can persist for a long time in the respiratory tract.
The alert in schools and kindergartens
Perhaps the most delicate part of the Italian alert concerns childcare facilities. The Ministry explicitly reported that the product may also have been purchased by schools. It means that the research does not only concern children's bedrooms: managers and managers of nursery schools, nursery schools, play centers, educational centers and recreational facilities are invited to check the games present in classrooms, warehouses and common areas, in particular those purchased in 2025 and 2026 and those ordered online. If one of the carrots is found intact, it should simply be removed from use and isolated while awaiting instructions for return or management. If, however, it is discovered that a carrot has already broken and sand has leaked into a classroom, the situation changes: no brooms or vacuum cleaners, access temporarily prevented to the affected area and reporting to the local health authority, which will have to evaluate any interventions on the environment.
