J&J Announces Discontinuation of Talc-Based Baby Powder Sales in North America

Johnson and Johnson announced earlier this week that the company will discontinue talc-based Baby Powder sales in the U.S. and Canada - a decision resulting from dwindling product sales and mounting safety concerns related to the talc-based product.

J&J faces a slew of talc powder lawsuits in which plaintiffs claim that J&J talc-based Baby Powder put consumers at increased risk of cancer without warning.

“Demand for talc-based Johnson’s Baby Powder in North America has been declining due in large part to changes in consumer habits and fueled by misinformation around the safety of the product and a constant barrage of litigation advertising,” J&J said Tuesday in a statement.

Despite their continued safety claims, J&J has paid out billions of dollars in settlements and verdicts related to talc powder lawsuits. Thousands of additional talc powder lawsuits have been filed against the manufacturer. As of March, nearly 19,400 plaintiffs had filed talc powder lawsuits in U.S. courts alone.

Although J&J has made the decision to remove talc-based Baby Powder from North American shelves, representatives of the company say this is no indication that they plan to ease up on their continued safety claims in regards to the talc powder lawsuits filed against them.

The company will continue to sell cornstarch-based Baby Powder in the U.S. and Canada as well as talc-based and cornstarch-based Baby Powder in markets abroad.

J&J plans to slow down commercialization of talc-based Baby Powder in North America over the next few months; all existing inventory in the U.S. will be sold to retailers until supplies diminish completely.