Newly-Reopened Abbott Baby Formula Factory Shuts Down AGAIN After Getting Partially Flooded During Storm

SAMUEL CORUM/AFP via Getty Images

More bad luck for parents desperate for scarce baby formula: the Abbott Laboratories factory that triggered the nationwide shortages has closed again, less than two weeks after reopening, because of damage caused during a severe storm.

The Sturgis, Michigan plant had announced at the beginning of June it was finally resuming production. Abbott had issued a recall in February for several of their leading brands, including Similac, and the plant shut down after FDA inspections found multiple violations, including bacterial contamination, roof leaks, and poorly enforced safety protocols.

Supply chain disruptions and stockpiling during the pandemic had already made certain formula varieties harder to find, even before the Abbott plant’s woes. The shortage was exacerbated by the fact that ninety percent of baby formula in the U.S. is produced by just four companies, and FDA regulations make it complicated, if not impossible, to obtain baby formula from overseas.

The FDA was harshly criticized for not working to resolve the issues with the Abbott Sturgis plant in a more expedited manner, and did eventually ease some regulations to allow more formula to be imported from the United Kingdom, Europe, and Australia. President Joe Biden also signed orders invoking emergency powers to prioritize resources with the goal of helping U.S. baby formula factories ramp up production and airlifted some of the varieties most desperately needed for infants with allergies and digestive restrictions from Europe.

When Abbott announced the plant was being reopened, the company vowed to “ramp up production as quickly as we can while meeting all requirements,” and said priority would be given to the EleCare specialty formulas, designed for infants with severe food allergies and other digestive issues that limit their nutrition options.

The new batches of formula were expected to hit store shelves on June 20. That’s up in the air now, after a statement Abbott issued on Wednesday saying that severe thunderstorms and rainfall in the area had “overwhelmed” the city’s stormwater drainage system, according to The Detroit News.

According to the AP, the storm “brought high winds, hail and power failures” to Sturgis, and caused flooding in multiple areas of the plant, according to Abbott spokesman Jonathan Hamilton, who declined to give specifics about the damage.

“Abbott has stopped production of its EleCare specialty formula that was underway to assess damage caused by the storm and clean and re-sanitize the plant,” said Abbott in a statement. “We have informed the FDA and will conduct comprehensive testing in conjunction with the independent third party to ensure the plant is safe to resume production. This will likely delay production and distribution of new product for a few weeks.”

Abbott added that their production would continue to prioritize EleCare after reopening, “followed by specialty and metabolic formulas,” and they were also working to “restart Similac production at the plant as soon as possible.”

The company announced on Monday that it was importing 1.1 million points of powdered baby formula from their manufacturing plant in Granada, Spain sometime this month.

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!