Johnson & Johnson recalls baby powder for asbestos

October 18, 2019

Johnson & Johnson on Friday recalled 33,000 bottles of baby powder as a precaution after federal regulators found trace amounts of asbestos in a single bottle purchased online.

The New Brunswick, New Jersey-based consumer goods giant said the recall is limited to one lot of Johnson’s Baby Powder produced and shipped in the U.S. last year. It also said that its baby powder does not contain asbestos.

“[J&J] has a rigorous testing standard in place to ensure its cosmetic talc is safe and years of testing, including the FDA’s own testing on prior occasions — and as recently as last month — found no asbestos,” the company said in a statement.

“Thousands of tests over the past 40 years repeatedly confirm that our consumer talc products do not contain asbestos. Our talc comes from ore sources confirmed to meet our stringent specifications that exceed industry standards,” the statement continued.

J&J also said that independent laboratories have tested the company’s talc and confirmed that it is asbestos-free.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration found small amounts of asbestos in one bottle, according to the company. The company is currently investigating whether the bottle is counterfeit and how the contamination occurred.

J&J shares fell $5.65, or 4.1%, to $130.52 in morning trade.

— The Associated Press contributed to this report.

This is a developing story.