Abbott manufacturing facility in Sturgis, Michigan, May 13, 2022.
Jeff Kowalski | AFP | Getty Images
Abbott Laboratories CEO Robert Redford Apologized on Saturday for a new editorial for the role of his company With a national shortage of infant formula, this week Congress and the Biden administration have taken urgent steps to mitigate it.
Ford also elaborated on the steps the company is taking to stop the shortage and vowed that “we are investing heavily to prevent this from happening again.”
Ford’s apology The Washington Post editorial The shortage was caused by a February company recall of formulas made at Abbott Nutrition’s plant in Sturgis, Michigan, after federal health officials discovered a potentially deadly bacterium. The factory was responsible for producing up to 25% of the country’s infant formula.
“We at Abbott take great pride in helping diabetics check for glucose, providing important coronavirus tests, and creating life-saving heart devices,” Ford wrote in an editorial. ..
“Yes, we take great pride in producing nutrition and infant formula to feed American babies, including the most vulnerable,” Ford writes. “But I’d like to say that the past few months have bothered us as much as you do. We’ve been disappointed since our voluntary recalls made our country worse. I’m sorry for all my family. Insufficient milk powder.. “
Ford wrote that Abbott believed that the voluntary recall was “the right thing to do.”
“We don’t risk the health of our children,” he wrote.
Four babies who drank infant formula at a factory in Michigan were hospitalized for a bacterial infection. Two babies have died.
But in April Federal health officials told NBC News Bacterial strains found in those babies did not match those found at the Abbott facility.
“However FDA survey We have found bacteria that we cannot tolerate in our plants. I have high expectations for this company, but we didn’t reach them. “
The apology came a few hours after the president Joe Biden Signed a newly passed access to infant formula. This is intended to make it easier for families covered by the Federal WIC Program to purchase infant formula. WIC is officially known as a special nutritional program for women, toddlers and children.
Biden enforced Defense Production Act on Wednesday To address the milk powder shortage, require the supplier to ship the ingredients to the milk powder manufacturer before any other company that may have ordered the same product.
On Sunday, U.S. military aircraft will fly 132 palettes of Nestle milk powder from Germany’s Ramstein Air Force Base to Indianapolis, Indiana. More formulas are expected to be later flown on US military aircraft.
Ford, on Saturday in his editorial, outlined the steps Abbott took in response to the shortage: “I was hospitalized for the absence of EleCare, a special milk powder for children who cannot digest other milk powders or milk. Some children did. “”
“Given their unique needs, children who lose access to it may need medical supervision until the prescription is returned to the shelves,” Ford wrote. “I’m not going to chop up the words. This is tragic and tragic and consumes my thoughts and the thoughts of my colleagues.”
Ford said Abbott “prioritizes EleCare when production resumes and pulls it out of the door first,” while 500 for families affected by the lack of EleCare with medical and living costs. Established a $ 10,000 fund.
He also writes that consumers can “safely buy Abbott products they find on store shelves.”
“The ones available have passed rigorous testing and are ready for your baby,” he writes.
Ford said Abbott will transform its production line for adult nutritional products at its Columbus, Ohio plant, “prioritizing the production of ready-to-eat liquid infant formula.”
“And since the recall, we have airlifted millions of cans of the most widely used infant formula from Ireland’s FDA-approved facility to the United States,” he writes.
Ford said he hopes Abbott will resume the Sturges program in the first week of June after signing a degree of consent with the Federal Food and Drug Administration.
He writes that after the factory reopens, it will take six to eight weeks for milk from the facility to be available on store shelves.
But he also said, “Full operation of the Michigan facility will more than double the current production of infant formula for the United States.”
“By the end of June, we will supply Americans with more milk powder than in January before the recall.
“These steps we take do not end the family struggle today,” Ford wrote. “Some solutions take weeks or longer, but we don’t rest until they’re done. We don’t rest. We want us to do the right thing. I know I have to get it back. “
