U.S. Baby Formula Shortage: Shipment Arrives From Europe; Abbott CEO Apologizes for the Shortage

The U.S. baby formula shortage will be slightly alleviated as the baby formula shipments from Europe arrived in Indiana on Sunday.

Officials hoped that more baby formula would be on American shelves this coming week. Brian Deese, the director of the National Economic Council, said the plane carrying 70,000 tons of baby formula from Ramstein airbase in Germany landed in Indianapolis and should cover about 15 percent of the baby formula shortage in the country, The Guardian reported.

Deese reassured that the country would be seeing more baby formula in stores beginning as early as this week. He added that the incoming Nestle product was a "specialty medical grade formula," which is the type that people need most in the market.

According to The Guardian, many parents have been struggling to procure baby formulas for their children, with 43 percent of baby formula products being out of stock at retailers since early this month.

Some states are reportedly facing severe shortages, such as Tennessee, Texas, and Iowa. More than 50 percent of the top-selling products are out of stock in these states.

U.S. Baby Formula Shortage

An infant in Minnesota, given formula manufactured in Abbott's Michigan factory, was diagnosed with Cronobacter sakazakii, a potentially lethal bacteria, in September 2021.

CNET reported that this was a factor why the country has a baby formula shortage. At least four more babies given formula from Abbott's Sturgis facility also fell sick.

Three of these babies had Cronobacter sakazakii and one with Salmonella Newport. Sadly, two infants in Ohio died from Cronobacter, which can cause sepsis or meningitis and even lead to death in babies.

Amid investigation related to these infections, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) received a report in October from a former employee claiming poor sanitation standards at the factory and doctoring records to hide inadequate quality checks.

After the FDA inspected the facility in February, Abbott then voluntarily recalled a number of batches of its baby formula, such as Similac, Alimentum, and EleCare, and shut down that location.

In a May 16 statement, Abbott noted that it conducted microbiological testing on products before distribution, and "no Abbott formula distributed to consumers tested positive for Cronobacter sakazakii or Salmonella."

Abbott is the largest of only a handful of baby formula manufacturers in the U.S., accounting for more than 40 percent of the market.

With this, Deese suggested introducing more competition in the market of baby formula makers so that the country's supply does not depend on just a few companies such as Abbott.

Abbott on U.S. Baby Formula Shortage

In his new Washington Post op-ed, Abbott Laboratories CEO Robert Ford apologized for the current shortage of baby formula nationwide. Ford noted that the company is making significant investments to ensure that the incident never happens again.

Ford wrote in his op-ed that they take great pride in helping people with diabetes and manufacturing nutrition and formula to feed America's infants, CNBC reported.

He then apologized to every family that they had "let down" since their voluntary recall, which worsened the nation's baby formula shortage. However, the Abbott CEO maintained that the recall was the "right thing to do," adding that they will not take risks regarding children's health.

President Joe Biden invoked the Defense Production Act in light of the baby formula shortage, which forces suppliers to prioritize the production of baby formula.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: New York City Declares State of Emergency Over Nationwide Baby Formula Shortage - From ABC News