Johnson & Johnson will stop selling and making its famous talc-based baby powder globally, two years after it ended sales in the US and Canada. Johnson’s baby powder has been selling since 1894 and has been a symbol of the company’s family-friendly image.
The global brand will start using cornstarch in all the baby powder it sells around the world, as a replacement for talcum powder. The shift has come as a response to the healthcare firm having to face thousands of lawsuits from consumers who claimed its talc products, including the popular and trusted Johnson’s baby powder, caused them to develop cancer.
“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 an official statement. “As a result of this transition, talc Johnson’s baby powder will be discontinued globally in 2023.”
Although the company said it had already started selling the cornstarch-based version instead of the baby powder around the world-it has continued to maintain that the talcum powder did not cause cancer. “Our position on the safety of our cosmetic talc remains unchanged. We stand firmly behind decades of independent scientific analysis by medical experts around the world that confirm that talc-based Johnson’s baby powder is safe, does not contain asbestos, and does not cause cancer” the company said.
