- Infant formula supplies have become more limited, pushing the out-of-stock rate to 40%, from 31% two weeks earlier.
- The shortage has caused retailers including CVS, Target and Walgreens to restrict the purchase of infant formula.
- In some states, the shortages are even worse: Tennessee, Texas, Missouri, Iowa, South Dakota and North Dakota face supply shortages of more than 50%.
The ongoing shortage of infant formula is not over – and only seems to be getting worse.
Nearly 40% of popular baby food brands sold out at US retailers during the week of April 24, according to an analysis by Datasembly, which assessed the inventory of more than 11,000 stores.
That’s more than an already high out-of-stock rate of 31% two weeks ago, Datasembly said.
Major retailers, including CVS, Target and Walgreens, limit the number of formula shoppers they can purchase.
Walgreens continues to limit shoppers to three infant and toddler formula products per transaction, said Walgreens Boots Alliance spokesman Steve Cohen. “Due to increased demand and various challenges for suppliers, infant and toddler formulas are experiencing constraints across the country,” he said.
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The situation is the same at CVS, which limits three baby food products per purchase in its stores and online, according to a statement to USA TODAY from CVS Health, which owns the pharmacy chain. “We continue to work with our baby food suppliers to address this issue and we regret any inconvenience this causes our customers,” the statement continued.
Target also limits shoppers to a maximum of four formula products at a time, the retailer told CBS News.
After recently visiting three different stores in one day last month, Elyssa Schmier, the vice president of government relations for advocacy group MomsRising, “suddenly realized my formula was nowhere to be found,” she told USA TODAY. “It’s almost a full-time job to find Similac.”
Infant formula recalls are exacerbating the situation
The problem was compounded by a voluntary recall issued by Abbott Nutrition in mid-February, recalling selected batches of Similac, Alimentum and EleCare formulas from Sturgis, Michigan. That recall was expanded to include one batch of Similac PM 60/40 at the end of February.
Then, in March, the Food and Drug Administration released preliminary findings about the formular’s failure to maintain sanitary conditions and procedures at that plant.
The FDA continues to investigate Abbott’s situation and “is working with Abbott to ensure a safe resumption of production at its Sturgis, Michigan plant,” it said in a statement about the recall on its website.
“We are aware that the recall has raised new concerns about the availability of certain infant formulas, particularly given the general pressure on supply chains experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic,” the FDA said. “We will continue the discussion with Abbott Nutrition and other infant formula manufacturers and consider all available resources to support the delivery of infant formula products.”
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An Abbott spokesperson told The Wall Street Journal on Friday that the company found that the formula made at that facility is “probably not the source of infection in the reported cases and no outbreak was caused by products from the facility.”
While it waits for that plant to reopen, Abbott is trying to increase production of Similac at its other plants and is shipping formula from Europe, the Journal reported.
Likewise, the maker of Enfamil is constantly running its factories to increase supply, the Reckitt Benckiser Group told the Journal.
The company has “sufficient supply,” but baby food sales in the US are up 18%, which is a “more than double” birth rate, Reckitt told CBS News.
Reckitt has “taken a number of measures – including shipping over 30% more product in the first quarter, running our factories 24/7 with 3 shifts a day, and rationalizing our portfolio to focus on those sizes.” that allows us to provide the most formula,” the company said in a statement to USA TODAY. “We have also significantly increased our quality assurance resources to ensure our strict safety standards are maintained.”
Where the shortage of formulas is worst
By the end of November 2021, baby food shortages started to crop up, when about 11% of popular brands were out of stock, Datasembly said. Before that, supply was “relatively stable for most of 2021 and (shortages) fluctuated between 2% and 8%,” the research firm said in its most recent report.
The recalls, supply chain shortages and inflation have impacted baby food supply, Datasembly CEO and founder Ben Reich said in the report.
“Unfortunately, the number of sold-out baby formulas has continued to rise since early April and we see no indication of a slowdown,” he said. Reich / said in an email exchange with USA TODAY.
In some states and cities, the shortages are even greater.
Six states — Tennessee, Texas, Missouri, Iowa, South Dakota and North Dakota — experienced supply shortages of more than 50% during the week of April 24, Datasembly said. The metro area with the highest out-of-supply rate was San Antonio, with 57%, followed by Memphis & Nashville (52%) and Des Moines & Houston (50%).
Follow Mike Snider on Twitter: @mikesnider†
