{"id":1707767,"date":"2022-10-23T07:51:37","date_gmt":"2022-10-23T11:51:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1707767"},"modified":"2022-10-23T10:00:30","modified_gmt":"2022-10-23T14:00:30","slug":"abbott-nutrition-to-invest-500-million-in-infant-formula-manufacturing-as-shortages-continue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/abbott-nutrition-to-invest-500-million-in-infant-formula-manufacturing-as-shortages-continue\/","title":{"rendered":"Abbott Nutrition to Invest $500 Million in Infant Formula Manufacturing as Shortages Continue"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fabbott-nutrition-to-invest-500-million-in-infant-formula-manufacturing-as-shortages-continue%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1707767&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/t-abbott-nutrition\">Abbott Nutrition<\/a> has announced plans to invest half a billion dollars in an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/t-infant-formula\">infant formula<\/a> manufacturing facility, saying that it has determined that the domestic supply chain for formula needs to be bolstered amid capacity shortfalls.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re moving forward with plans for a half-billion-dollar investment in a new U.S. nutrition facility for specialty and metabolic infant formulas,\u201d Abbott Nutrition chairman and CEO Robert Ford said during an Oct. 19 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fool.com\/earnings\/call-transcripts\/2022\/10\/19\/abbott-laboratories-abt-q3-2022-earnings-call-tran\/\">earnings call.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Ford said the company is in the final stages of deciding where to build the plant, which he expects to be \u201cstate-of-the-art\u201d and that would set \u201ca new standard for infant formula production.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe recognize there\u2019s more to do but feel confident in the progress we\u2019re making,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>Baby formula had been in short supply in the United States amid supply chain pressures and a labor <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/t-shortage\">shortage<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The supply crunch hit a fever pitch in May when an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/nationwide-baby-formula-shortage-hits-shocking-levels-sparking-panic-among-parents_4450233.html\">analysis by<\/a> Datasembly showed that around 40 percent of the top-selling infant formula products were out of stock at the end of April.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is a shocking number that you don\u2019t see for other categories,\u201d Ben Reich, CEO of Datasembly,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/baby-formula-shortage-worse-ration-limit-purchase-walgreens-target-cvs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">told<\/a>\u00a0CBS News at the time.\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019ve been tracking it over time and it\u2019s going up dramatically.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Prior to the shortage, infant formula out-of-stock levels sat at around 5 percent.<\/p>\n<p>The supply shortfall prompted an outcry from concerned parents, prompting the Biden administration to fly in supplies from other countries, including Australia, New Zealand, and Switzerland, under an initiative dubbed Operation Fly Formula.<\/p>\n<p>The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hhs.gov\/about\/news\/2022\/10\/06\/11-operation-fly-formula-flights-completed-by-september-29.html#:~:text=Under%20Operation%20Fly%20Formula%2C%20the,get%20to%20store%20shelves%20faster.\">said in an update<\/a>\u00a0in early October that, as of Sept. 29, Operation Fly Formula had completed 74 flights and imported over 97.9 million 8-ounce bottle equivalents of baby formula.<\/p>\n<p>The supply problem was made worse when Abbott Nutrition shut down a baby formula plant in Sturgis, Michigan, in February and recalled its infant formula products after reports of bacterial infections in babies who had consumed products made at the facility.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4813717\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Abbott-Nutrition-Sturgis-plant-1200x675-1.jpeg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy size-large wp-image-4813717\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/themes\/eet\/images\/white.png\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Abbott-Nutrition-Sturgis-plant-1200x675-1.jpeg\" alt=\"Epoch Times Photo\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4813717\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/Abbott-Nutrition-Sturgis-plant-1200x675-1.jpeg\" alt=\"Epoch Times Photo\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" \/><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a> The Abbott Laboratories facility in Sturgis, Mich., on May 20, 2022. (Eric Cox\/Reuters)<\/figure>\n<p>The Sturgis plant has since reopened but\u00a0the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently warned that infant formula supply chain fragility remains.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYears of consolidation in the infant formula industry and concerning food safety processes and general procedures at some of the facilities producing these products have resulted in a fragile supply chain that is susceptible to production disruptions when quality issues are identified,\u201d said FDA Commissioner Robert Califf, in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fda.gov\/news-events\/press-announcements\/fda-committed-strengthening-us-infant-formula-supply-review-provides-roadmap-support-ongoing-efforts\">Sept. 20 statement<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Califf said that domestic baby formula manufacturers like Abbott Nutrition \u201chave stepped up to meet the call to increase their production capacity and are working diligently\u201d to address supply chain vulnerabilities, but more needs to be done.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe long-term resiliency of the infant formula supply chain will rely on greater diversification of manufacturers, including new entrants to the U.S. marketplace, investment in new manufacturing facilities by infant formula producers and a commitment by these companies to consistently and continuously adhere to the FDA\u2019s quality and safety standards,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>The FDA <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/multiple-factors-hindered-fdas-response-to-infant-baby-formula-shortage-internal-review_4744291.html\">said that<\/a> it had carried out an internal review of its response to the baby formula shortage and that a number of factors\u2014including limited infant formula-specific training among FDA investigators\u2014had hampered the agency\u2019s response.<\/p>\n<p>Besides aspects that are within the purview of the FDA, the agency cited other factors that must be addressed by external stakeholders, such as a limited number of domestic baby formula manufacturers and needed improvements in the ingredient supply chain.<\/p>\n<div class=\"author_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"one_author_block round\">\n<div class=\"top_row\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/author-tom-ozimek\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/WEB_TomOzimek-_1.jpg\" alt=\"Tom Ozimek\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Follow<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Tom Ozimek has a broad background in journalism, deposit insurance, marketing and communications, and adult education. The best writing advice he&#8217;s ever heard is from Roy Peter Clark: &#8216;Hit your target&#8217; and &#8216;leave the best for last.&#8217;\n<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Abbott Nutrition has announced plans to invest half a billion dollars in an infant formula manufacturing facility, saying that it has determined that the domestic supply chain for formula needs<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1707771,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[547],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1707767","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-bongino-report"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1707767","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1707767"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1707767\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1707771"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1707767"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1707767"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1707767"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}