When Stocks Get ‘Powdered’: Johnson & Johnson In Damage-Control Mode Amid Panic-Driven $40 Billion Share Sell-Off 

Johnson & Johnson (J&J) has unequivocally defended the safety of its baby powder product after reports of cancer causing materials in its products led to massive fall in market value of the company, as reported by Reuters.

“The FDA has tested Johnson’s talc since the ‘70s. Every single time it did not contain asbestos,” the company said in a 19 December tweet. The company statement came after publication of a Reuters investigation that found the healthcare conglomerate knew for decades that the carcinogen lurked in its products (especially baby powder).

According to the report, the tweet, posted under the handle @JNJNews, didn’t mention that the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) found traces of asbestos in the company’s Shower to Shower talc in 1973. The information was available in documents that were examined by the news agency.

The report led to a stock selloff that resulted in company losing about $40 billion in market valuation in one day. It created a public relations crisis for the company.

The company, in order to reassure its investors and consumers, has published a long rebuttal to the report on its website and announced a $5 billion stock buyback. Social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook are being used by the company to express its views to people.