Johnson & Johnson — New Brunswick NJ HQ and Baby Powder Plant

Plaintiffs alleged in publicly filed U.S. asbestos personal-injury and wrongful-death litigation that they were allegedly exposed to asbestos while working at the Johnson & Johnson New Brunswick, New Jersey headquarters and Baby Powder / Shower to Shower main production complex. For the full corporate summary, see the Johnson & Johnson manufacturer page.

Plant Description and Operating Era

The New Brunswick NJ complex has served as Johnson & Johnson’s corporate headquarters since the company’s late-nineteenth-century founding and historically housed the main U.S. production lines for Johnson’s Baby Powder, Shower to Shower, and other cosmetic-talc products. The site allegedly ran talc receiving, milling, granulating, cosmetic-grade blending, packaging, and warehousing operations alongside pharmaceutical and consumer-products manufacturing, R&D, and executive offices. J&J discontinued domestic sales of talc-based Johnson’s Baby Powder in 2020 and worldwide sales in 2023, and cosmetic-talc production at New Brunswick has been sunset.

Premises ACM Narrative

Plaintiffs alleged in publicly filed U.S. asbestos personal-injury and wrongful-death litigation that pre-1980 New Brunswick premises involved asbestos through:

  • Asbestos pipe covering on pharmaceutical steam sterilizer feeds, IV solution manufacturing lines, and utility piping
  • Asbestos sheet gaskets at autoclave, sterilizer, and process-piping flanges
  • Asbestos-block insulation on cold-chain refrigeration equipment
  • Asbestos sprayed fireproofing on structural steel (pre-1973 EPA ban)
  • Asbestos-cement roofing and asbestos-cement bulkhead panels
  • Talc processing: airborne tremolite/anthophyllite/chrysotile asbestos allegedly contaminated cosmetic talc through the Vermont / Italian / Chinese talc supply chain during talc receiving, milling, granulating, and cosmetic-grade blending operations. Plaintiffs alleged that talc-contamination exposure affected talc mill workers, cosmetic-grade blenders, quality control laboratory technicians, and downstream production employees at the New Brunswick baby powder manufacturing lines.

Workers Exposed

HFIAW Insulators, UA Pipefitters, BAC Bricklayers (on boiler house rebuilds), IBEW Electricians, Millwrights, pharmaceutical production workers, talc mill workers, QC laboratory technicians, and sterilizer operators allegedly worked around asbestos-containing materials at the New Brunswick complex.

If You Worked at Johnson & Johnson New Brunswick

If you or a family member worked at the Johnson & Johnson New Brunswick, New Jersey headquarters or Baby Powder / Shower to Shower production plant before 1980 (or at any time during the cosmetic talc production era) and have been diagnosed with mesothelioma, lung cancer, asbestosis, ovarian cancer, or another asbestos-related disease, you may have a legal claim.

Free, confidential case evaluation: Speak with O’Brien Law Firm — (314) 936-2956