Milk barter on Facebook, obstacle course to get it… US President Joe Biden is in turmoil due to a shortage of baby milk in the United States.
Pounded by Republican opposition, the White House vowed action this Thursday as the stock-out rate of infant formula reached 43% at the end of last week, according to data provider Datasembly. .
After the death of two babies, the manufacturer Abbott announced on February 17 the "voluntary recall" in its Michigan factory of powdered milks, including Similac, used by millions of American families.
The investigation has since cleared the affected milk but production has still not resumed, compounding the shortage already caused by broader supply chain issues and lack of manpower.
The situation is particularly critical for babies dependent on special milks, which are only manufactured by Abbott, underlined the White House which gives the figure of 5,000 infants in this case.
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The Republican opposition, campaigning before the legislative elections in November, therefore logically took up the subject.
The elected to the House of Representatives Elise Stefanik thus affirmed during a press conference to have contacted the authority concerned, the American drug agency (FDA) in February: “Joe Biden has no plan.
(…) When we asked the White House about the shortage, they laughed.
It is shameful.
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“Missouri is one of six US states where more than half of baby milk is out of stock,” said colleague Ann Wagner, speaking of young mothers who barter on Facebook to get it.
Randy Feenstra, an elected official from Iowa, assured him that, in his region, families “did 50, 75, up to 100 miles to try to find it” (that is from 80 to 160 kilometers).
The White House reacts
To silence critics, the US executive is considering, among other things, increasing imports, even though the United States produces 98% of the formula milk it consumes, he said in a statement. without giving details.
The Biden administration has also assured that it is working with states to ease the administrative burden on less fortunate families, who buy infant milk using food stamps.
The White House has finally announced that it has asked the federal competition authority to look into the abuses linked to this situation of shortage, in particular the resale of infant milk online at prices much higher than normal.
Joe Biden also spoke with retail representatives and baby milk producers, conversations described as “productive and encouraging” by an administration official, who did not wish to be named.
She would not, however, say how long it would take for the situation to improve.