Johnson & Johnson have recalled 200,000 bottles of Motrin Infant formula because they may contain small particles of plastic that the McNeil Unit are saying came from a third party manufacturing process.
The company warns parents that the Motrin may contain pieces of a plastic that are used to make Teflon coating. While there have been no injuries or illnesses reported, it is important for consumers to heed this recall.
Although the suspect Motrin was made at a company plant in Belgium, the main manufacturing plant in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania has been shut down since a major recall of over 136 million bottles of children and infant over-the-counter medicine was recalled in 2010. Since 2009, there have been 40 product recalls from this New Brunswick, New Jersey health care conglomerate.
Other J&J Recalls in 2013
- Oral contraceptives with flawed tablets
- Adept hip implants that were failing
- One touch blood glucose meters that were shutting off instead of warning users of high blood sugar
- Children’s tylenol that contained too much acetaminophen
- Types of K-Y Jelly personal lubricant that never received regulatory approval
More Plastic Problems
Johnson&Johnson are not the only company with plastic problems this past week. General Mills has recalled Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls with Icing because of plastic particles found in the dough. The plastic parts were mixed in with the dough when a piece of the assembly line broke.
Staying on Top of Recalls
Recalls happen, they happen without maliciousness on the part of the manufacturer but because humans make mistakes and machines break. Some say that lack of manufacturing safety regulations, poor employee conditions, too much outsourcing and lack of manufacturing process evaluation markers may make recalls more prevalent than they need to be.
While all or some of the above may be true, consumers need to be on guard at all times and tune in to the latest recalls. This applies not just to food and medicine but also to houseewares, environmental products, furniture, automobiles and personal care products. A website www.recalls.gov will keep you on top of all of the latest recalls. You can even sign up for alerts at Foodsafety.gov and be emailed when a new alert is issued.
While it is impossible to predict whether a product you purchase will be recalled, it is prudent to stay informed!
-The Alternative Daily
Sources:
http://www.m.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/news/20130909/pillsbury-cinnamon-rolls-icing-recall
http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/07/health/motrin-recall/index.html
