39 Tons Of Baby Formula Arrived From Overseas

CBS News: Military Plane Carrying 39 Tons Of Baby Formula Arrives In U.S.
Enough specialty infant formula for more than half a million baby bottles arrived Sunday in Indianapolis, the first of several flights carrying infant formula from Europe expected this weekend to relieve the deepening shortage in the U.S. The formula, weighing 78,000 pounds, or 39 tons, was being transported by military plane, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters aboard Air Force One as President Biden flew from South Korea to Japan. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack was in Indianapolis to greet the arrival of the first shipment. (5/22)

ABC News: Plane Carrying More Than 75,000 Pounds Of Imported Baby Formula Lands In US 
Another shipment of formula will be flying into Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia on a FedEx plane this coming week, the White House announced Sunday afternoon. FedEx has secured a government contract to carry that critical cargo, bringing it from Ramstein Air Base in Germany. From there, the formula will be transported to a Nestlé facility in Pennsylvania via FedEx's integrated air and ground network. The White House said the flight and trucking "will take place in the coming days." (Hutzler, 5/22)

The Washington Post: First Shipment Of Baby Formula From Germany Arrives In Indianapolis 
The Biden administration announced Sunday that it would use the Defense Production Act to give two companies priority on ingredients or equipment necessary to manufacture formula. Abbott Nutrition will be able to make priority orders for sugar and corn syrup. Reckitt will be able to place priority orders for filters that have been constrained during the pandemic. (Wang, Jeong and Johnson, 5/22)

The CEO of Abbott apologizes —

The Wall Street Journal: Abbott CEO Apologizes For Company’s Role In Baby Formula Shortage 
Abbott Laboratories Chief Executive Robert Ford apologized Saturday for his company’s role in the nationwide shortage of baby formula and promised production will ramp up again in June. “We’re sorry to every family we’ve let down,” Mr. Ford wrote in a Washington Post op-ed. (Otis, 5/22)

The Washington Post: Abbott CEO Robert Ford: What We're Doing To Fix The Formula Shortage. 
We at Abbott take great pride in helping people with diabetes check their glucose, providing critical coronavirus testing and making lifesaving heart devices. And yes, we take great pride in manufacturing nutrition and formula to feed America’s infants, including our most vulnerable. But the past few months have distressed us as they have you, and so I want to say: We’re sorry to every family we’ve let down since our voluntary recall exacerbated our nation’s baby formula shortage. (Robert Ford, 5/21)

More on the formula shortage —

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Homemade Baby Formula Putting Wisconsin Babies In The Hospital
Children's Wisconsin has seen an increase in the number of babies being admitted due to inappropriate substitutions for baby formula, the hospital said Friday. The hospital frequently sees babies that are malnourished or show a failure to thrive, for reasons including a lack of access to formula, Heather Van Roo, a hospital spokeswoman, said in a statement to the Journal Sentinel. "But we are seeing more kids where inappropriate substitutions of formula is a factor in their hospitalization," she said. (Shastri, 5/20)

Cincinnati Enquirer: Baby Formula Shortage Hurting Cincinnati Families Of Color
Laurie Alexander, of West Price Hill, is researching how to get baby formula from outside the United States. She's three months pregnant, and while she's breastfed her three babies, she has always had to supplement with formula. The shortage of baby formula now is worrying her, even though her delivery date is six months out and federal officials say help is on the way. "It's very scary," Alexander said. "I'm looking at the U.K. and Canada. I've been trying to stock up on it early." The nationwide shortage is alarming parents of babies who need it. In the Cincinnati area, nonprofits that help lower-income moms and women of color say the problem is exacerbated for their clients, who are suffering the most from ever-rising costs with inflation and often, a lack of transportation. (Demio, 5/23)

San Francisco Chronicle: Baby Formula Crisis: Bay Area Health Officials Offer Advice On Coping With Shortage
In a joint statement Friday, officials from all nine Bay Area counties, plus San Benito County and the city of Berkeley, noted that while California is faring better than many other states in the shortage, parents having trouble finding their baby’s formula should use caution when looking for alternatives. “Babies need the right balance of nutrients — not too much or too little of anything — to grow and be healthy,” the statement said. “It is important for your baby’s health to use products that meet federal standards to ensure the formula is safe and free of harmful bacteria.” (Echeverria, 5/21)

Bloomberg: Dangerous DIY Baby Formula Recipes Go Viral As Parents Get Desperate
As a nationwide baby formula shortage sends parents into crisis mode, social media posts containing dangerous misinformation about homemade formula recipes have gone viral online, racking up views in the millions. Although major networks like Facebook, TikTok and YouTube have taken steps to label photos, videos and posts with contextual information pointing to the harms of such recipes, and in some cases removed them, they have done so inconsistently, allowing the advice to continue spreading and putting children at risk. (Alba, 5/21)