Sri Lanka Ceases J&J Baby Powder Imports Until Asbestos Test

Introduction

Two government officials and Johnson & Johnson's local distributor in Sri Lanka told the country has stopped importing J&J's Baby Powder until the company proves its product is free from carcinogenic asbestos. As per the statement, stocks already present in the country can be sold, but no new imports of the talcum powder would be allowed.

J&J's baby powder was a popular healthcare product in Sri Lanka and in most parts of Asia until, J&J India, from where Sri Lanka imports, provided fresh test results. Reuters reported last December that the U.S. drugs and consumer products group was aware of the asbestos dangers in its baby powder which resulted in several countries like India conducting extensive testing. The chief executive of Sri Lanka’s National Medicine Regulatory Authority (NMRA), Kamal Jayasinghe, informed the local distributor that only after conducting extensive testing the country would go ahead with importing talcum powder. Meanwhile, U.S. Democratic Senator Patty Murray sent a letter to J&J's Chief Executive Alex Gorsky on January 29, asking information regarding the Reuters Special report in December 2018, which mentioned the talcum giant knew about the asbestos presence in its talc products since ages. The U.S. Senator asked for documents related to the talc testing done for the presence of carcinogens and information regarding how the results were presented to the regulators and consumers by the company.

There are more than 1,000 lawsuits pending against Johnson & Johnson which are centralized for pretrial proceedings in the District of New Jersey, presided over by Hon. Freda L. Wolfson, U.S.D.J./ Hon. Lois H. Goodman, U.S.M.J. as a part of multidistrict litigation (MDL No. 2738; In Re: Johnson & Johnson Talcum Powder Products Marketing, Sales Practices, and Products Liability Litigation).

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