J&J pulls 12 million Motrin bottles from shelves

(Reuters) - Johnson & Johnson, the consumer products company which has been plagued by product recalls in the past two years, said it is voluntarily asking retailers to remove about 12 million bottles of Motrin pain relievers from store shelves.

The coated caplets may not dissolve as quickly as intended when they near their expiration dates, the company found when testing product samples, according to a statement posted Wednesday on a website of J&J's McNeil Consumer Healthcare Division.

"There is no safety concern if consumers continue taking the product in accordance with its label; however, it is possible there may be a delay in experiencing relief," the statement said.

Bonnie Jacobs, a J&J spokeswoman, told Reuters the company is not asking consumers to return the caplets. The bottles were distributed in the United States, Puerto Rico, Bahamas, Fiji, Belize, St. Lucia and Jamaica.

Three McNeil manufacturing plants have been under stepped-up U.S. government supervision since March following a rash of consumer product recalls.

(Reporting by David Henry; Editing by Phil Berlowitz)