A baby formula display shelf is seen at a Walmart grocery store in Orlando. Stores across the United States have struggled to stock enough baby formula, causing some chains to limit customer purchases.
There appears to be no end in sight to America’s baby formula shortage, according to the most recent data from a retail tracking group.
The share of baby formula out of stock across the U.S. hit 40 percent on April 24, according to Datasembly. That’s up from 29 percent in March.
The shortages were prompted in part by the shutdown of a key production facility in Michigan this year. The plant, owned by Abbott Nutrition, has been the subject of an FDA and CDC investigation following reports of contaminated formula that was linked to the deaths of at least two infants.
Formula shortages are especially dangerous, Brian Dittmeier, senior director of public policy at the National WIC Association, an advocacy group for women, infants and children, said in a statement.
“Unlike other food recalls, shortages in the infant formula supply affects a major — or even exclusive — source of nutrition for babies,” he said. “Inadequate nutrition could have long-term health implications for babies.”
