Study Finds Bromine in 38 Percent of Sampled South African Children’s Products, Consistent with Recycled Electronics

A University of Cape Town study published July 8 in the journal Heliyon detected bromine, an indicator of banned flame retardants, in 38 percent of 138 new and second-hand children's products sold in South Africa. Concentrations ranged from 10 to 7,223 mg/kg, with antimony present in 90 percent of the bromine-positive samples.

AllAfrica reported that about 85 percent of the bromine-containing items exceeded the Basel Convention's 50 mg/kg limit for decabromodiphenyl ether.

Researchers screened items including Rubik's Cubes, toy mobile phones, puzzle mats, sunglasses, toy vehicles and child car seats using a handheld X-ray fluorescence spectrometer. The highest bromine levels appeared in Rubik's Cubes, a toy mobile phone and a puzzle mat.

Additional contaminated products included sunglasses, child car seats, toy motorcycles, baskets, trolleys, stethoscopes and pistols.

The chemical patterns matched contamination from recycled electronic waste rather than intentional addition of flame retardants, the study concluded. Rebecca Mlelwa, who conducted the research as part of her PhD under Professor Andrea Rother of UCT's Environmental Health Division, and Rother stated that concentrations were too low to serve a flame-retardant purpose.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers and hexabromocyclododecane were banned under the Stockholm Convention because of links to endocrine disruption, neurotoxicity and cancer.

Children face heightened risk because their organs and nervous systems are developing and they often mouth objects. Mlelwa and Rother called for stronger safeguards in the global circular economy to prevent legacy pollutants from re-entering consumer goods.