Formula’s a math problem
Supply greatly outstripped by demand, leaving shelves empty
Parents across the U.S. are scrambling to find baby formula because supply disruptions and a massive safety recall have swept many leading brands off store shelves.
Months of spot shortages at pharmacies and supermarkets have been exacerbated by the recall at Abbott, which was forced to shutter its largest U.S. formula manufacturing plant in February due to contamination concerns.
On Monday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the Food and Drug Administration was “working around the clock to address any possible shortages” and will try to expedite imports of foreign baby formula to increase supply.
For now, pediatricians and health workers are urging parents who can’t find formula to contact food banks or doctor’s offices.
“For babies who are not being breastfed, this is the only thing they eat,” said Dr. Steven Abrams, of the University of Texas Austin. “So it has to have all of their nutrition and, furthermore, it needs to be properly prepared so that it’s safe for the smallest infants.”
Trying to keep formula in stock, retailers including CVS and Walgreens have begun limiting purchases to three containers per customer.
Nationwide about 40% of big box stores are out of stock, up from 31% in midApril, according to Datasembly, a data analytics firm. More than half of U.S. states are seeing outof-stock rates between 40% and 50%, according to the firm, which collects data from 11,000 locations.
Baby formula is particularly vulnerable to disruptions because just a handful of companies account for almost the entire U.S. supply.
Industry executives say the constraints began last year as the COVID-19 pandemic led to disruptions in ingredients, labor and transportation.
Then in February, Abbott recalled several major brands and shut down its Sturgis, Mich., factory when federal officials concluded four babies suffered bacterial infections after consuming formula from the facility. Two of the infants died.
When FDA inspectors visited the plant in March they found lax safety protocols and traces of the bacteria on several surfaces. None of the bacterial strains matched those collected from the infants, however, and the FDA hasn’t offered an explanation for how the contamination occurred.
For its part, Abbott says its formula “is not likely the source of infection,” though the FDA says its investigation continues.
Industry professionals say it will be hard to boost supply quickly, because the FDA requires extensive testing, labeling and inspections.
‘”It’s a long and rigorous process to bring any new manufacturers into this country,” said Ron Belldegrun, co-founder of ByHeart, a New York-based specialty formula maker that recently launched its first product after four years in development.