Baby formula shortage: Out-of-stock rates surge to 70%

The baby formula shortage continues to worsen as baby formula makers and the head of the U. S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) continue to face bipartisan grilling on what led to the national crisis.

For the week ending May 22, the out-of-stock rate for baby formula rose to 70% nationwide, according to recent data by retail data firm Datasembly. It's a significant increase from the week prior when the national out-of-stock rate for baby formula stood at 45%.

In April, the data showed that the formula shortages hit 30% before jumping to 43% by early May, underscoring how the situation is growing worse before it gets better.

Abbott Nutrition's Sturgis, Michigan, facility, which exacerbated the industry-wide shortage, is expected to restart production June 4, meaning products from the plant won't return to store shelves until at least mid-July, according to the company's production timeline.

In February, Abbott temporarily shuttered the plant and issued a recall for some of its formula after the FDA detected positive samples of a rare-but-dangerous bacteria in multiple parts of the plant.

FDA Commissioner Robert Califf was questioned by lawmakers again on Wednesday during a congressional hearing on why the agency took months to inspect and... (Read more)

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