J&J to stop making talc-based baby powder – here’s why…

The popular talc-based baby powder made by Johnson & Johnson will no longer be available come 2023.

Johnson & Johnson removed the baby powders in the US and Canada in 2020

In 2020, the product came under fire in the United States due to ‘consumer safety lawsuits’. Lawsuits claimed that the baby powder contained asbestos which is accused of causing ovarian cancer. Johnson & Johnson subsequently pulled the products from shelves in the US and Canada.

In a statement released on Thursday, 11 August, the company stated that it will be transitioning to a cornstarch-baby powder.

“As part of a worldwide portfolio assessment, we have made the commercial decision to transition to an all cornstarch-based baby powder portfolio,”

said Johnson & Johnson.

The company has faced thousands of lawsuits regarding its talc products

Reuters reports that J&J is facing thousands of lawsuits regarding its talc products and links to cancer. The company has denied all the allegations stating that decades of scientific testing and regulatory approvals have proved that talc is safe and asbestos-free.

In 2018, the publication shared an investigation that found that J&J knew about the asbestos in its talc products. Records, trial testimony and other evidence showed that from at least 1971 to the early 2000s, the raw talc and finished powders sometimes tested positive for containing small amounts of asbestos.

‘Unsafe’ additive in Skittles turns into lawsuit – but it’s still allowed in SA

Meanwhile, it was previously reported that sometimes all we want to do is ‘taste the rainbow’ but it seems rainbow tasting is a far stretch away thanks to a new lawsuit involving Skittles candy.

A lawsuit in California, USA, has claimed that Skittles are ‘unsafe to consumers’. The lawsuit cites that the popular sweets have ‘heightened levels of titanium dioxide (TiO2)”. Titanium Dioxide, according to WebMD, is often used in food and sunscreen products as both a colour enhancer and UV filter.

Six years ago, Mars Inc, promised to remove the enhancer from its products – the lawsuit claims that this is misleading and unsuccessful. FDA regulations allow the use of titanium dioxide as long as the levels do not go over 1% of the food’s weight. The lawsuit states that although Skittles are within FDA guidelines, Mars Inc. does not adequately inform its consumers about the additive. Read the full story here.