Johnson & Johnson Ending Sales of Talcum Powder Products in U.S.
ohnson & Johnson discontinued its legacy talc-based baby-powder products in the U.S. and Canada after thousands of suits alleging asbestos contamination led to a decline in sales.
The health-care giant said Tuesday it had stopped shipping hundreds of talc-based items in the U.S. and Canada after coming to a “commercial decision” to discontinue them. J&J will wind down sales in those markets over the coming months, said Kathleen Widmer, chairman of the company’s North America consumer unit. All existing inventory will continue to be sold through retailers until supplies run out, she said.
Shares of the New Brunswick, New Jersey-based company declined 0.3% in late trading to $148.55. Since the start of this year, the shares had gained 2.2% through Tuesday’s close.J&J’s cornstarch-based baby powder, which has been on the market since 1980, will continue to be sold in the U.S. and Canada. Widmer said 75% of its U.S. baby-power customers use the cornstach product, while 25% rely on the talc-based product. Outside the U.S.
Johnson’s Baby Powder currently accounts for less than 1% of the company’s U.S. consumer-health revenue. It has seen a 60% decline in sales since 2017 as consumer habits have changed, Widmer said. The company blames “misinformation around the safety of the product and a constant barrage of litigation advertising” for the drop in demand, according to a statement.The decision to discontinue was made during a portfolio assessment related to Covid-19 in March.
“We needed to skinny down” to free up space in manufacturing plants to allow for appropriate social distancing, Widmer said. “We probably would have waited a couple of months otherwise. But we knew the business, which is already small in scale, would continue to decline.”
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