Many Utah families have been feeling the pinch from the baby formula shortage over the past few months.
A major manufacturing plant in Michigan was shut down in February over contamination fears after two infants died of bacterial infections and another two were hospitalized. Several popular brands were also recalled from store shelves. Estimates have said up to 20% of the nation’s supply of formula has been affected by the plant closure.
Governor Spencer Cox said on Thursday that the state is working on solutions to the shortage, but its options are limited given the nature of the crisis.
“Sadly, there’s very little that we can do at the state level, because we don’t have any baby formula production facilities," Cox said. "The problems around baby formula production have nothing to do with state government or at the state level. The best that we can do is to reach out to our partners across the state, find out where there is formula and where there isn’t formula and try to move formula around to places where it doesn’t exist right now.”
According to Allied Market Research, 90% of the baby formula market in the U.S. is controlled by four companies that rely on a small network of facilities to cut production costs. When one goes down, as happened in February, the consequences are far-reaching.
The Food and Drug Administration said on Thursday that the plant, which is run by Abbott Nutrition, could resume production of formula as soon as next week, but it would be some time – up to two months from now – before new formula starts hitting store shelves.
Cox compared the formula shortage to what was seen at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic with things like toilet paper and bottled water where people were buying much more than they actually needed. He asked families to be mindful when they go to the store.
“We would encourage people to please only buy what you need, we are being told that production is coming back on line, and that in the next week or two we should see an increase in supply in the stores, so if you can, again, pease just buy what you need and if you have extra, consider donating to a food bank or a formula exchange,” said Cox.
Cox placed the blame for the shortage squarely on the shoulders of the federal government.
“This is a colossal failure of government, of different government agencies," he said. "It’s a colossal failure of our federal government’s trade barriers and tariffs. This was a very foreseeable crisis and sadly, again, shutting down a plant because of what were real concerns, for sure, but not having a plan in place to replace the problems that would cause is not only misguided, it’s bordering on criminal. I just can’t believe we got to this place.”
The Biden Administration invoked the Defense Production Act on Wednesday to jumpstart formula production and increase the amount of formula coming in from overseas. Previously, the U.S. bought almost no formula from overseas due to costly tariffs and stiff regulations on imported formula.
The U.S. House of Representatives also voted to approve a $28 million emergency spending bill this week to address the shortage. All four of Utah’s representatives in the House, all Republicans, voted against the bill. That bill still needs to pass the Senate and be signed into law by President Biden.
Families experiencing a shortage of formula are encouraged to consult their pediatrician about the possibility of switching brands. Making homemade formula, diluting formula, or using expired formula is strongly discouraged.
