FAQs about Home Approved StoneHome Approved Stone

If no credible scientific study has ever found a single slab of stone that poses a health risk to consumers, why is this Home Approved Stone program necessary?
The Home Approved Stone program is vital to make sure consumers have no doubts whatsoever when they purchase stone countertops for their homes. Some people have tried to undermine consumer confidence by suggesting that questionable data suggests granite countertops may pose a health risk. Every Home Approved Stone is screened to make sure it's safe for indoor use. The natural stone industry is looking out for the best interests of consumers.

Isn't this just a marketing campaign to sell more stone countertops?
No. The Home Approved Stone program ensures that stones are rigorously tested before they are used in a home. The ultimate goal is to reassure consumers — once and for all &mdah; that the natural stone countertops they buy for their homes do not put their family's health at risk. The Home Approved Stone logo on the countertop eliminates the concern because it shows the stone has passed a strict set of testing protocols developed by respected experts on radon and radiation exposure.

Who will do the testing and how will it be done?
Details of the program's implementation are still being finalized with scientific consultants and will be in place before any stone is labeled with the "Home Approved" logo.

Will all natural stone retailers participate in this program?
The Home Approved Stone program is voluntary. Not all distributors and fabricators may choose to participate, but we suspect most will.

This program sounds expensive — will it drive up the price of stone countertops?
There certainly is some expense involved in this program, but its impact on the price of natural stone countertops will by outweighed the reassurance it offers.

Is the government involved in this program in any way?
Although no government agency is directly involved, the testing protocols used in the Home Approved Stone program have been submitted for peer review by the scientific community. Once the scientific community embraces the standards, we expect government agencies will as well.

If not for all the bad press that granite countertops has received recently, would you have launched this program?
Not very likely. All the confirmable testing done to date — including studies published in scientific journals around the world during the last 20 years — has yet to identify a single granite countertop slab that poses any health risk. However, since special interests have created consumer concern, we developed the test standards with experts in this field to reassure the public that granite and natural stone countertops pose no risk.

But aren't the leading experts you speak about simply hired guns for the industry?
The industry did engage independent experts to do this work because we felt it was important to get it done promptly. No independent group had volunteered to develop standards on its own and the only way to do it was for the industry to take the lead.

If I find a natural stone countertop in a retail store that does not have a Home Approved Stone logo, does that mean that the countertop is unsafe?
Not at all. No credible research conducted to date — including the most comprehensive scientific study of granite countertops, completed just weeks ago — has ever found a single stone slab that poses a health risk. But because our competitors have been able to mislead some consumers about the safety of stone countertops, we felt compelled to reassure them once and for all that the natural stone countertops they buy for their homes do not pose a health risk. The Home Approved Stone Program is designed to provide consumers with this ultimate level of reassurance.