Iran Press/ America: A baby formula shortage worsens, leading some retailers to limit how much customers can buy in a given transaction.
During the week of March 13, some 29% of baby formula products were out of stock at retailers across the United States.
According to the product data firm Datasembly, which analyzed more than 11,000 sellers of baby formula in the US.
The out-of-stock percentage for baby formula hovered between 2% and 8% in the first seven months of last year, but it has grown steadily since then and reached 23% in January, Datasembly reported.
Thousands of young babies across the country rely on formula each year.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, just 25% of infants born in 2017 were fed exclusively through breastfeeding in their first six months.
The squeeze on baby formula comes as the U.S. economy grapples with rising inflation and persistent supply chain issues brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Consumers have taken to social media to complain about bare shelves, and the shortages have prompted at least one national chain to ration its baby formula inventory.
Walgreens, the pharmacy giant with more than 9,000 stores across the U.S., is limiting all infant and toddler formula purchases to three per transaction.
This comes just two months after the health care company Abbott recalled some of its powdered baby formulae over consumer complaints related to Cronobacter sakazakii and Salmonella Newport.
The company said none of the distributed products — including Similac, Alimentum , and EleCare powder formulas — tested positive for the bacteria. However, it did find evidence of Cronobacter sakazakii in non-product contact areas of its Sturgis, Mich., manufacturing facility.
Abbott later expanded the recall after learning of the death of an infant who had consumed Similac PM 60/40 and tested positive for Cronobacter sakazakii. Still, it said the cause of the infection had not been determined.
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