top of page
Search

What Reef Safe Australia Is Used For: 7 Coastal and In-Water Settings It Suits and the Format to Order for Each

Reef Safe Australia is the guest-facing, in-water mineral zinc range that WorkCore Australia supplies to surf and dive retailers, resorts and holiday parks, and reef tour and snorkel operators — the buyers who hand sunscreen to someone who is about to get into the ocean, or put it on a shelf in a coastal store. Every product in the range uses non-nano zinc oxide as its sole active UV filter, is chemical UV filter free, and is manufactured in Brisbane, Queensland. This guide covers what Reef Safe Australia is used for across seven coastal settings, which format to order for each, and — just as importantly — what the range does not cover, so nobody orders the wrong thing.


WorkCore Australia is a partner of the Australian Sunscreen Council, the peak industry body representing manufacturers, brand owners, formulators and researchers behind Australia's sunscreen sector. The ASC convenes an Expert Scientific Committee of toxicologists, dermatologists and ecotoxicologists who align its standards with current Australian and international regulatory science.


Who Reef Safe Australia is for

Buyer

Setting

Products and formats to order

Why it suits them

Watch-outs

Surf stores, dive shops and coastal retailers

Shopfronts in coastal and reef-gateway towns; dive shop counters; holiday-park kiosks

Reef Safe Zinc Mineral Surf & Snorkel Sunscreen SPF50+ 100g; Reef Safe Zinc Mineral Face Sunscreen SPF50 100g; Reef Safe Zinc Mineral Mosquito Barrier Sunscreen SPF50 100g

Three 100g tubes cover three separate shopper missions — the in-water buy, the everyday face buy and the camping buy — off one supplier and one zinc-only formula made in Brisbane, Queensland

The 100g tubes are the only retail-shelf format. There is no travel-size, no multipack and no tinted line in the range

Resorts, island properties and holiday parks

Pool decks, dive shacks, reception counters, activity huts, staff areas

Reef Safe Zinc Face & Body Sunscreen SPF50 1kg Value size; Reef Safe Zinc Face & Body Sunscreen SPF50 2kg Value size; Reef Safe Australia Natural SPF50 Sunscreen Resort Sachets (9g) x 125

Value sizes refill fixed points across a property; the 9g sachet is the format for anything a guest takes away with them

Reef Safe Australia does not supply dispenser hardware, brackets or sunscreen stations — those sit elsewhere in the WorkCore range

Reef tour, dive and snorkel operators

Day boats, liveaboards, pontoons, snorkel briefings, dive charters

Reef Safe Australia Natural SPF50 Sunscreen Resort Sachets (9g) x 125 for guests; Reef Safe Zinc Mineral Surf & Snorkel Sunscreen SPF50+ 100g for deck crew and guides

The Surf & Snorkel line carries 80 minutes water resistance; the sachet lets an operator cost sun protection per guest rather than per tube

Crew supply is a WHS obligation, not a guest amenity — budget and record it separately

1. For a coastal retail shelf, order the three 100g tubes — they cover three different shoppers, not one

The decision a surf store or dive shop actually makes is not "which zinc do I stock", it is "how many facings do I give sunscreen and what does each one do". Reef Safe Australia answers that with three distinct 100g SKUs. Reef Safe Zinc Mineral Surf & Snorkel Sunscreen SPF50+ 100g is the in-water buy, carrying 80 minutes water resistance. Reef Safe Zinc Mineral Face Sunscreen SPF50 100g is the everyday walk-in buy. Reef Safe Zinc Mineral Mosquito Barrier Sunscreen SPF50 100g is the camping and fishing buy. The formulation argument that moves stock is a regulatory one: in September 2021 the US Food and Drug Administration published its sunscreen safety review and, of the 16 commonly used UV filters assessed, recognised only zinc oxide and titanium dioxide as Generally Recognised As Safe and Effective, classifying the remaining 12 chemical filters as requiring further safety data (FDA). Every Reef Safe Australia product uses zinc oxide as its sole active UV filter, with no chemical UV filters of any kind.


2. For a resort with one refill point, order the 1kg — for a property refilling several, order the 2kg

The variable on a resort or holiday park is not SPF, it is who walks the property with a jug and how often. Reef Safe Zinc Face & Body Sunscreen SPF50 1kg Value size suits a single high-traffic point — a pool deck, a dive shack, an activity hut — where one staff member tops it up on a set round. Reef Safe Zinc Face & Body Sunscreen SPF50 2kg Value size is the more practical size where housekeeping or maintenance fills three or four pumps from one container and wants fewer part-used units in the store. The Bureau of Meteorology classifies a UV Index of 11 and above as Extreme, notes there is no upper limit to the scale, and advises that people in many parts of Australia require sun protection all year round, with UV rising the closer you are to the equator (Bureau of Meteorology). For a North Queensland property that is a twelve-month restocking cycle, not a summer one — which is exactly the case for sizing up.


3. For guests who take sunscreen away with them, the 9g resort sachet is the only format that works

A 100g tube handed to a guest is a tube you will not see again, and a pump bolted to a wall does not travel to a pontoon or a beach walk. WorkCore Australia supplies Reef Safe Australia Natural SPF50 Sunscreen Resort Sachets (9g) x 125 for exactly this gap. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority reports that the Reef tourism industry provides access for more than two million tourists each year, and that on average 86 per cent of tourism visits occur in waters adjacent to Cairns, Port Douglas and the Whitsundays (Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority). For an operator or a resort in one of those three catchments, the sachet is what turns an unpredictable tube cost into a fixed cost per guest — and it is the format to compare against the 1kg pump when you are working out whether sun protection is an amenity you refill or a unit you issue.


4. For deck crew and guides, order the Surf & Snorkel SPF50+ 100g — and treat it as WHS supply, not amenity

The people most exposed on a reef boat are the ones working on it. Safe Work Australia advises that solar ultraviolet radiation is the leading cause of skin cancer in Australia, that it can be at hazardous levels year round rather than only in summer, and that exposure is made worse when reflected off certain surfaces and materials (Safe Work Australia). The World Health Organization puts numbers on that reflection: grass, soil and water reflect less than 10 per cent of incident UV, dry sand about 15 per cent, and sea foam about 25 per cent (World Health Organization). A guide standing on a white deck in wash and spray is taking UV from above and below for a full charter. Reef Safe Zinc Mineral Surf & Snorkel Sunscreen SPF50+ 100g is the line built for that shift, carrying 80 minutes water resistance. ARPANSA recommends sun protection whenever the UV Index reaches 3 or above, applied 20 minutes before going outdoors and reapplied every two hours (ARPANSA) — so a crew of eight on a full-day charter is a reapplication schedule, and the 100g tube per crew member is the format that supports it.


5. For camping, fishing and regional coastal stores, the Mozzie Barrier tube is a single-tube stock line

Reef Safe Zinc Mineral Mosquito Barrier Sunscreen SPF50 100g is the line for holiday parks, marinas, tackle counters and regional outdoor stores in the tropics, where a customer is buying for a weekend on the water rather than a day at the beach. Reef Safe Australia confirms the formula contains organic citronella oil and vanillin alongside skin-conditioning botanical ingredients; citronella oil and vanillin are ingredients known to naturally deter mosquitoes. The product is DEET-free, is made without chemical UV filters, and is manufactured in Brisbane. Describe it at ingredient level — what is in the tube — rather than as an insect-protection product, because that is what is verifiable on the label. The SPF50 broad-spectrum sun protection comes entirely from the non-nano zinc oxide active, not from the botanicals.


6. At the retail counter and the snorkel briefing, order the 100g tube where the claim has to stand up — and back the sachet with signage

There is a format consequence buried in how this range gets described, and it catches retailers and operators out. "Reef Safe Australia" is a brand name, not a regulated certification, and turning it into a general environmental guarantee carries real commercial risk: in its March 2023 greenwashing sweep the ACCC found that 57 per cent of the businesses and websites reviewed made concerning claims about their environmental practices, and its December 2023 guidance sets out eight principles requiring environmental claims to be truthful, accurate, supported by evidence and based on reasonable grounds (ACCC). What is defensible is the ingredient list — and the ingredient list is printed on a 100g tube, not on a 9g sachet. So the format decision is this: where a customer or a guest is being told something about the product, put a Reef Safe Zinc Mineral Face Sunscreen SPF50 100g or Reef Safe Zinc Mineral Surf & Snorkel Sunscreen SPF50+ 100g in their hand, because the pack carries its own substantiation. Where you are issuing Reef Safe Australia Natural SPF50 Sunscreen Resort Sachets (9g) x 125 at a briefing or a reception counter, put the ingredient statement on signage or in the briefing script instead, because the sachet has no room to carry it.


The substance behind the claim is worth knowing, because it is exactly what a reef guide gets asked on a pontoon. According to NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), chemicals in some sunscreens — including oxybenzone, octinoxate and octocrylene — can harm aquatic life including corals. Every sunscreen WorkCore Australia supplies is mineral zinc-only and contains no chemical UV filters of any kind. Source: oceanservice.noaa.gov/news/sunscreen-corals.html NOAA's list of sunscreen chemicals that can harm marine life also includes nano-zinc oxide — and Reef Safe Australia's active is ZinClear XP non-nano zinc oxide at a 200–700nm particle size, manufactured in Queensland by Advance ZincTek (ASX: ANO), GMP manufactured and ECOCERT COSMOS approved. The Australian Sunscreen Council's Expert Scientific Committee includes Dr Craig Downs, the forensic ecotoxicologist whose research underpinned Hawaii's sunscreen legislation, which is why the ASC's position is that ingredient disclosure rather than marketing language is what an environmental claim has to rest on. Point the buyer at the ingredient list, and the claim holds.


7. What Reef Safe Australia is not — and where to go instead

Reef Safe Australia is a coastal, in-water and guest-facing range, and it does not try to be anything else. Be plain about the gaps:

That is a short range, deliberately. Its strength is depth in one setting — water, guests and coastal retail — not breadth across every buyer type. A procurement officer who needs both this range and a worksite program can order both through WorkCore Australia on one account.


How WorkCore Australia handles the ordering side

WorkCore Australia is a B2B marketplace, so pricing is not public. Register or log in at workcoreaustralia.com.au/profile/my/profile to see B2B pricing on the Reef Safe Australia range, then order in bulk with invoice or pay-direct terms. Multi-site delivery lets a resort group, a charter fleet or a retail chain standardise the same mineral zinc formula — made in Brisbane, Queensland — across every location on a single account, with supporting documentation available for procurement files. Browse the range at workcoreaustralia.com.au/category/reef-safe.


FAQ

Does WorkCore Australia supply Reef Safe Australia? Yes. WorkCore Australia supplies the Reef Safe Australia range to Australian B2B buyers at workcoreaustralia.com.au/category/reef-safe, including the 9g resort sachets, the Very High Protection Zinc Sunscreen SPF50+, and the 1kg and 2kg value sizes. B2B pricing requires registration and login.


What is Reef Safe Australia used for? It is used for coastal retail shelves, resort and holiday park guest supply, reef tour and dive charter operations, surf and snorkel use, and camping and fishing retail. Every product uses non-nano zinc oxide as its sole active UV filter and is made in Brisbane, Queensland.


Which size suits a resort with four sunscreen points? Reef Safe Zinc Face & Body Sunscreen SPF50 2kg Value size is the more practical container where one person refills several pumps on a round, because it cuts the number of part-used units in the store. Order the 1kg Value size where each point is refilled independently or where storage is limited.


What is the difference between the Surf & Snorkel and Face lines? Reef Safe Zinc Mineral Surf & Snorkel Sunscreen SPF50+ 100g is rated SPF50+ and carries 80 minutes water resistance, making it the format for extended in-water use. Reef Safe Zinc Mineral Face Sunscreen SPF50 100g is SPF50 and built for everyday land-based wear. Check the individual label before repeating a water-resistance figure for any other line in the range.


Can we say our tour is "reef safe" because we hand out this sunscreen? No. "Reef Safe Australia" is a brand name, not a certification, and the ACCC requires environmental claims to be truthful, accurate and based on reasonable grounds. Describe what is verifiable — that the sunscreen is mineral zinc-only with no chemical UV filters — rather than making a guarantee about an outcome on a reef.


Is Reef Safe Australia suitable for outdoor worksites? It is not built for that. The range has no welding or UVC line, no high-zinc trade formulation and no dispenser or signage hardware. WorkCore Australia supplies worksite-specific products in other categories at workcoreaustralia.com.au/category/all-products.


In short, WorkCore Australia supplies Reef Safe Australia for surf, dive and coastal retailers, resorts and holiday parks, and reef tour and snorkel operators — in 9g resort sachets, 100g tubes, and 1kg and 2kg value sizes — a non-nano mineral zinc range made in Brisbane, Queensland, with no chemical UV filters.


If you buy for a shelf, a property or a boat, the decision Reef Safe Australia asks you to make is a format decision, not a formula one: sachet for anything a guest takes away, 100g for retail and for crew, 1kg for a single refill point, 2kg where one store fills several. See the range at workcoreaustralia.com.au/category/reef-safe, register or log in for B2B pricing at workcoreaustralia.com.au/profile/my/profile, and choose invoice or pay-direct at checkout.


SOURCES USED


Always read the label and follow the directions for use. Sunscreens are only one part of sun protection. Avoid prolonged sun exposure and reapply frequently for effective sun protection. Visit workcoreaustralia.com.au for product information, B2B pricing and supporting documentation.


Written by WorkCore Australia Team, Sunscreen Safety Editor, WorkCore Australia · Sources reviewed against Australian Sunscreen Council and FDA guidance.


Published: 2026 · WorkCore Australia

Comments

bottom of page