Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc. (J&J) announced that 15 new tests from the same bottle of Johnson’s Baby Powder previously tested by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) found no asbestos. An additional 48 new laboratory tests of samples from the single lot of Johnson’s Baby Powder that the Company voluntarily recalled on October 18 also confirmed that the product does not contain asbestos. These tests were conducted by two third-party laboratories as part of the Company’s ongoing testing and investigation.
J&J stated, “Rigorous and third-party testing confirms there is no asbestos in Johnson’s Baby Powder. We stand by the safety of our product.”
Following the voluntary recall, the Company contracted two third-party laboratories to expedite a large number of tests of the recalled lot of Johnson’s Baby Powder utilizing Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), Powder X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Polarized Light Microscopy (PLM) testing.
In addition to using their standard preparation rooms, one of the laboratories deviated from their normal protocol by using an auxiliary room. In that auxiliary room, five samples were prepared, and three initially tested positive for asbestos. Upon this finding, the laboratory undertook an investigation and determined that a portable air conditioner in use during sample preparation in the auxiliary room was contaminated with asbestos. No asbestos was detected in any of the samples when prepared in the standard room.
J&J said that our talc comes from ore sources confirmed to meet our stringent specifications that exceed industry standards. The Company and its suppliers routinely test to ensure our talc does not contain asbestos. Our talc has also been tested and confirmed to be asbestos-free by a range of independent laboratories, universities and global health authorities.
J&J further said that this finding underscores the importance of investigating any positive test result. Even when careful safeguards are followed, asbestos contamination may be introduced during sample division, storage, preparation and analysis, according to the American Society for Testing and Materials, an International Standards Organization that identifies contamination as a concern in asbestos analysis.
