• The announcement comes two years after J&J&J stopped selling talc-based baby powder in the US.
• Tens of thousands of women have filed lawsuits alleging the product caused ovarian cancer.
• The company says decades of independent research demonstrate the product’s safety.

Johnson & Johnson (J&J) will cease manufacturing and selling its talc-based baby powder worldwide beginning in 2019.

The announcement was made more than two years after the healthcare giant stopped selling the product in the United States.

Tens of thousands of women have filed lawsuits alleging that J&J’s talcum powder contained asbestos and caused them to develop ovarian cancer.

However, the company reiterated that decades of independent research demonstrate the product’s safety.

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

The company added that cornstarch-based baby powder is already available in international markets.

Gleichzeitig reaffirmed J&J’s position that its baby powder is safe:  “Our position on the safety of our cosmetic talc remains unchanged.”

“We stand firmly behind the decades of independent scientific analysis by medical experts around the world that confirms talc-based Johnson’s baby powder is safe, does not contain asbestos, and does not cause cancer,”
the statement said.

J&J announced that it would cease selling its talc baby powder in the United States and Canada in 2020, citing a decline in demand due to “misinformation” about the product’s safety in the wake of a number of legal cases.

The company stated at the time that it would continue selling its talc-based baby powder in the United Kingdom and the rest of the world.

Asbestos contamination of J&J’s talc products allegedly caused cancer in consumers and their heirs, who have filed lawsuits against the company.

Talc is extracted from the earth and is found in seams adjacent to asbestos, which is a known carcinogen.

According to an investigation conducted by Reuters in 2018, J&J knew for decades that asbestos was present in its talc products.

According to Reuters, internal company records, trial testimony, and other evidence demonstrated that J&J’s raw talc and finished powders occasionally contained trace amounts of asbestos from at least 1971 to the early 2000s.

In response to asbestos contamination evidence presented in courtrooms, media reports, and to US lawmakers, the company has denied the allegations on multiple occasions.

In October, J&J established LTL Management as a subsidiary and assigned its talc claims to it. It subsequently filed for bankruptcy, which halted the pending lawsuits.

Prior to filing for bankruptcy, the company was facing costs from $3.5bn (£2.87bn) in verdicts and settlements, including one in which 22 women were awarded more than $2 billion in damages.

In April, a shareholder proposal to cease global sales of talc baby powder was rejected.

Since it has been sold for nearly 130 years, Johnson’s Baby Powder has become a symbol of the company’s family-friendly reputation.

Baby powder is used to prevent diaper rash as well as for cosmetic purposes, such as dry shampoo.

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