Data from 130000 stores in the United States showed that the shortage of infant formula milk powder worsened sharply last week. According to the data of the retail tracking company datasembly, in the week ending May 21, the shortage rate in the United States soared to 70%, higher than 45% in the previous week. In many cities and states, the situation is much worse.
More than two-thirds of the states have a shortage rate of more than 70%, among which California, Missouri, Minnesota, Nevada, Montana, Louisiana, Arizona and Utah have a shortage rate of more than 80%, and other states have been the hardest hit, 89%, higher than 49% last week.
State shortages
In Houston, the shortage rate of milk powder soared to a worrying 90% from 56% last week. San Francisco and Sacramento had the lowest stock out rates of 31% and 32% respectively, but the stock out rates of the two cities soared to 87% and 88% last week.
Cities with the highest out of stock rate
As of the week of May 21, Indianapolis had the lowest shortage rate of 49%, up from 39% the previous week. West Texas followed, with a shortage rate of 53%, but more than twice the 26% shortage rate of the previous week.
To alleviate the shortage, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is increasing the import of infant formula from other countries. The first batch of special infant formula loaded with 78000 pounds, known as the "flying infant formula operation" (a measure previously announced by Biden to guide the U.S. Department of health and human services and the Department of agriculture to use the commercial aircraft of the Department of defense to import infant formula from abroad), arrived on Sunday.
In addition, US President Biden cited the national defense production act last week to increase the production of infant formula. At the same time, the Biden government also sought to increase the inventory of 1.5 million cans of Nestle special infant formula.
Infant formula arrives in Indianapolis from overseas. Brian Deese, President Joe Biden's chief economic adviser, said that the goods accounted for 15% of the country's total demand and were still in transit.
FDA Commissioner Robert Califf said in Congress on May 26: "within two months, our milk powder supply should be beyond the normal range, and the quantity is too large."