Nestlé to fly infant formula products to US: report

Multinational food conglomerate Nestlé will be flying in its infant food products into the U.S. to help with the current shortage, according to a report from Reuters on Tuesday.

 

The newswire reported that Nestlé will be moving its Gerber baby food formula to the U.S. from the Netherlands as well as its Alfamino baby formula from Switzerland.

 

“We prioritized these products because they serve a critical medical purpose as they are for babies with cow’s milk protein allergies,” Nestlé said in an email provided to Reuters.

 

“Both products were already being imported but we moved shipments up and rushed via air to help fill immediate needs,” the company added.

 

Parents across the U.S. have had to contend with empty shelves at stores when trying to find infant formula recent months. This shortage was brought on by a voluntary recall by Abbott Nutrition of its infant formula products after concerns were raised regarding a possible bacterial infection.

 

On Monday, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced new import guidelines and flexibilities to import baby food products into the U.S. to help alleviate the shortage.

 

The FDA will temporarily “not object” to the importation of some infant formula products into the U.S. as well as the distribution of products manufactured in the U.S. but meant for overseas markets. Companies from around the world that are interested in these temporary guidelines have been asked to “quickly” submit information to the FDA for evaluation.

 

As the U.S. seeks to bring in infant formula from out of the country, Abbott will also be restarting domestic production at its plant in Sturgis, Mich. after it was announced the company had reached a consent decree with the FDA. However, Abbott said it could take two months for its facility to reach full capacity.