Colgate-Palmolive (CL) is recalling nearly 5 million bottles of its Fabuloso Multi-Purpose Cleaners due to concerns about a bacterial infection.
The company said it was voluntarily recalling some of the multi-purpose cleaners because a preservative was not added at the intended levels during manufacturing.
Fabuloso Multi-Purpose Cleaners can be used to clean most residential hard surfaces, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said on Feb. 8. Roughly 4.9 million bottles are being recalled in the U.S. and about 56,000 in Canada.
The recalled products can contain Pseudomonas species bacteria, including Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Pseudomonas fluorescens, which are environmental organisms found widely in soil and water.
No incidents or injuries have been reported, the CPSC said.
Consumers are advised to immediately stop using the products and can contact the company for a full refund or free replacement through a form on a recall site.
People with weakened immune systems, external medical devices, or underlying lung conditions who are exposed to the bacteria face a risk of serious infection that may require medical treatment.
The bacteria can enter the body if inhaled, through the eyes, or through a break in the skin. People with healthy immune systems are usually not affected by the bacteria.
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Fabulous Leading All-Purpose Cleaner
“These bacteria are constantly finding new ways to avoid the effects of the antibiotics used to treat the infections they cause,” the Centers for Disease Control said on its website.
"Antibiotic resistance occurs when the germs no longer respond to the antibiotics designed to kill them," the CDC said. "If they develop resistance to several types of antibiotics, these germs can become multidrug-resistant."
In 2017, multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa caused an estimated 32,600 infections among hospitalized patients and 2,700 estimated deaths in the U..S, the CDC said.
Created in Venezuela in 1980, Fabuloso was the leading all-purpose cleaner in the U.S. with a sales share of 12.44% in 2019, according to Statista.
The recalled products were sold on Amazon.com (AMZN) and other websites and at Walmart (WMT), Home Depot (HD), Sam’s Club, Family Dollar, Dollar General (DG) stores nationwide between December 2022 and January 2023.
The first 8 digits of the lot code of the recalled products are 2348US78 through 2365US78 and 3001US78 through 3023US78.
A list of the UPC and lot codes of the recalled products can be found at www.Fabulosorecall.com. For a complete list of products, visit www.Fabulosorecall.com.
The lot code is located on the back of the bottle above the label either directly above or towards the top of the bottle. No Fabuloso Antibacterial variants or other Fabuloso products are affected by this recall.
