Drug-making plants are wild, untamed territory

Wood chips and metal chips in Rolaids.

“No,” I thought. “I couldn’t have heard that right.”

This was at a holiday party a few days ago. My friend Joe was telling me about yet another Johnson & Johnson recall. But over all the noise, did I actually hear him say that some Rolaids products were recalled due to wood chips and metal chips?

I heard right.

Now that we’re into 2011, I’m sure no one is more pleased to put 2010 behind them than J&J executives. It really got ridiculous there at the end.

Just since August, recalls have included children’s Benadryl and Motrin products (these were the same products that were part of a massive recall last spring). An Acuvue contact lens product was also recalled due to traces of a stinging acid. Yeesh!

That was just days after a recall of two J&J hip implants that were causing excessive replacement surgeries.

In late November some Tylenol cold products were pulled. Also in November, several Mylanta liquid products were recalled due to presence of alcohol from flavoring agents.

And now…wood and metal particles in Rolaids.

What a year for J&J–a train wreck wrapped in a tsunami deep fried in lava!

I bet they popped a lot of champagne at J&J headquarters to welcome 2011.

Sources:
“13 Million Packages of Rolaids Recalled” Courtney Hutchison, ABC News, 12/10/10, abcnews.go.com
“J&J Recall Watch: This Time, it’s Mylanta (and Contact Lenses)” Wall St. Journal, 12/1/10, blogs.wsj.com