J&J rejects report of ‘harmful’ chemical in its baby shampoo

Johnson & Johnson has strongly rejected findings of a Rajasthan government laboratory showing presence of “harmful” chemicals in the US-based company’s baby shampoo, a popular product in India.

Based on the report of the Drug Testing Laboratory in Jaipur, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has written to chief secretaries of all States and Union Territories asking them to stop sale of Johnson & Johnson’s (J&J) baby shampoo and remove it from stocks.

The NCPCR said the test report found presence of formaldehyde in J&J’s baby shampoo.

The company in a statement said it has not received any direction to stop the sale of its shampoo and that it was not accepting the interim results of the laboratory tests which were based on “unknown and unspecified” methods.

“We will await the results and conclusions of the re-testing process at the Central Drugs Laboratory. We are not aware of any directions from NCPCR. It must be noted that any such directions, under the law, can only be issued under certain prescribed conditions,” the company said.

J&J said it is in full compliance with current Indian regulatory requirements and standards for manufacturing and testing of all its products.

“We have confirmed to the Indian authorities that we do not add Formaldehyde as an ingredient in our shampoo nor does Johnson’s baby shampoo contain any ingredient that can release formaldehyde over time. Our products are safe to use and conform to all applicable standard under the D&C (Drugs and Cosmetics) Act and D&C rules,” it said.

COMMENT NOW