So for the past several months, Rolaids have completely disappeared off store shelves in my area (CA Bay Area). There are great big empty spots on the shelves where they should be, but no Rolaids. Recently the softchew variety, which had been around after the other ones disappeared, are gone too.
I know there were a couple of recalls (one because of a musty odor that was making people sick and one due to the presence of metal or wood shavings in some lots), but that doesn’t seem like a good reason for the whole product to completely disappear for many months. How long does it take them to sort out their factory problems and get the lines going again?
I asked the people at the store, but they don’t have any idea what’s up. Anybody know?
(FORT WASHINGTON, Penn.) – Johnson & Johnson recalled over 13 million packages of Rolaids antacids Thursday after reports that metal and wood particles were found in the products.
The voluntary recall of Rolaids Extra Strength Softchews, Rolaids Extra Strength plus Gas Softchews and Rolaids Multi-Symptom Plus Anti-Gas Softchews follows “a small number of adverse reports associated with the product being recalled,” according to information posted on the Rolaid’s website.
Given the size and timing of the recall (Dec 10, 2010), and the nature of the problem, I doubt they have had a chance to refill the pipeline with new product yet.
Yeah, but the thing is, they’ve been consistently gone since last summer. I don’t think they’ve ever come back on the market since then. So yeah, I can see how they’d still be gone based on the latest recall, but I don’t see how it took them from June or July until December to get them back on the market after the first recall.
Perhaps there is some reason why your local area has been hit so hard. I think I remember seeing them around since last summer. Have you checked other stores in your surrounding area?
Marketers sometimes wait to reintroduce products after a large national recall until the memory of the ‘problem’ has long past.
They’ve been gone from here for a long time. Just the plain old ones, in the rolls or in the canister thing. The empty shelves are filling up with other stuff! eBay is selling them, and not cheaply!
I wonder if they’ll ever come back. My husband swears by them.
I haven’t made an exhaustive search, true, though the local Lucky and Safeway supermarkets and CVS Pharmacies I’ve visited don’t have them.
It’s not like it’s a crusade for me or anything–Tums work just as well for the occasional antacid need. But it’s just one of those mysteries I’ve been curious about, since recalled items don’t usually just disappear and leave gaping holes on store shelves for that long. Either the holes are filled in with something else or the new improved version of the product returns.
Speaking as someone with daily heartburn myself (even when I wasn’t a fatty), there’s nothing that Rolaids can do that Tums can’t do at least as well. But it’s a good question. I hadn’t heard of a recall. I can’t fathom what the hell would cause shavings to get into rolaids, either, except maybe a disgruntled employee throwing a tree branch into the mixing bin.
I’m also in SF, and noticed a few months ago that I couldn’t order them for my store. I didn’t realize there was a recall - I just started substituting (inferior) Tums.
In our store, at least, we stopped carrying the multi-roll packs even before the recall - we just had the softchews, and the single rolls as an impulse buy at the cash register.
For what it’s worth. You might check up there periodically to see if the smaller packages return, if Rolaids are what you’re after.
If I’m taking something for short-term, though, I really love Pepcid Complete - a nice, chalky antacid, along with a longer-acting H2 inhibitor. Yum!
Hit a product with new competition that is preventative, rather than palliative, wait six month, then have a massive recall. Now, you are the local retailer, who has been told the product is unavailable “right now” after it was already loosing market share for six months. Are you gonna break your heart stocking up on it?
If you are J & J, do you want to expend resources rebuilding a brand that was already in decline? How much?
But it’s just one of those mysteries I’ve been curious about, since recalled items don’t usually just disappear and leave gaping holes on store shelves for that long. Either the holes are filled in with something else or the new improved version of the product returns.