9 hours ago
Last Updated:October 17, 2025, 23:19 IST
Over 3,000 people sued Johnson & Johnson and Kenvue Ltd in London, alleging Baby Powder contained asbestos linked to cancer.
The company has faced a series of similar lawsuits in North America, with the latest UK claim filed in the High Court in London. (File)
Over 3,000 people have filed a legal claim against pharmaceutical and cosmetics giant Johnson & Johnson (J&J) in the UK, accusing the firm of selling baby talcum powder containing cancer-causing minerals, called asbestos.
The company has faced a series of similar lawsuits in North America, with the latest UK claim filed in the High Court in London, news agency AFP reported.
The lawsuit against J&J and its subsidiary Kenvue Ltd, filed by KP Law, claimed that the US pharma company was aware as early as the 1960s that its mineral-based talcum powder contained fibrous forms of talc, as well as tremolite and actinolite. Tremolite and actinolite, in their fibrous form, are classified as asbestos, which are linked to potentially deadly cancers.
“The claim, which covers the period from 1965 to 2023, details how Johnson & Johnson knew that their talc products contained carcinogenic fibres, including asbestos, for more than 50 years," KP Law said.
The company “chose to keep it on the market in the pursuit of profit," it added, claiming J&J only withdrew their mineral talc from Britain in 2023, three years after it was taken off North American shelves.
The lawsuit further claimed that either the complainant or a family member of the complainant developed forms of ovarian cancer or mesothelioma from using J&J’s Baby Powder.
The lawsuit demanded that all subsidiaries of J&J should be held liable, as it estimates the claims amount to more than £1 billion ($1.3 billion).
J&J’s Response
A Johnson & Johnson spokesperson referred enquiries to its former consumer health arm Kenvue, which it separated from in August 2023.
“As a part of that separation, Kenvue retained the responsibility and any purported liability for talc-related litigation outside of the United States and Canada," the spokesperson said.
A Kenvue spokesperson said the safety of J&J’s Baby Powder “is backed by years of testing by independent and leading laboratories, universities, and health authorities in the UK and around the world".
The spokesperson added “the high-quality cosmetic grade talc" used in the powder “was compliant with any required regulatory standards, did not contain asbestos, and does not cause cancer".
Earlier in April this year, a US court rejected a J&J offer to pay approximately $8 billion over 25 years to settle around 90,000 civil complaints there related to ovarian issues, without admitting liability.
The World Health Organisation’s cancer agency classified the firm’s talcum powder as “probably carcinogenic" for humans in July last year.
(With inputs from agencies)
Shobhit Gupta is a sub-editor at News18.com and covers India and news. He is interested in day to day political affairs in India and geopolitics. He earned his BA Journalism (Hons) degree from Ben...Read More
Shobhit Gupta is a sub-editor at News18.com and covers India and news. He is interested in day to day political affairs in India and geopolitics. He earned his BA Journalism (Hons) degree from Ben...
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London, United Kingdom (UK)
First Published:
October 17, 2025, 23:19 IST
News world Thousands In UK Sue Johnson & Johnson Over Baby Powder Cancer Risks
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