Nestlé SA
NSRGY 0.26%
said it would fly extra baby formula into the U.S. from Switzerland and the Netherlands as the Gerber owner looks to accelerate deliveries to alleviate a severe shortage across the U.S.
The move comes after the Food and Drug Administration on Monday said it was encouraging overseas manufacturers to apply to ship their formula to the U.S., easing rules that had effectively prevented shipments from many such companies.
Switzerland-based Nestlé is the third-largest player in the U.S. baby formula market, with a share of 9.7% according to Euromonitor. Similac owner
Abbott Laboratories
ABT 4.47%
is No. 1, followed by U.K.-based Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC, which makes the Enfamil brand.
Nestlé said it has significantly increased the amount of formula available by ramping up production. The formula being flown in was previously imported but Nestlé said it has moved shipments up to fill immediate needs. The company said it gave priority to the two brands it is flying in—Gerber Good Start Extensive HA and Alfamino—because they are for babies with allergies to cow’s milk protein.
Baby formula has been in short supply for months partly because of supply-chain issues caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Product recalls and a production halt by Abbott have exacerbated the shortages.
Abbott closed its Sturgis, Mich., plant, which makes Similac and other brands, in February after the FDA said it found the presence of a germ called cronobacter sakazakii, which can be deadly in infants, in the factory. The germ wasn’t found in products.
Abbott on Monday said it had reached agreement with the FDA for the reopening of the Sturgis plant. The consent decree between Abbott and the FDA, which must be ratified by a federal court, outlines the steps that the company must take for the agency to allow the reopening of the plant.
The FDA move on imports is part of a broader effort by the Biden administration to ease the formula shortage. The White House has also been working with formula makers to identify transportation, logistical and supplier hurdles to increasing production at their U.S. and FDA-approved facilities, officials have said.
Reckitt Benckiser has said it is running its factories 24/7, including on Sundays, to increase production. The company has also narrowed production to increase volumes, focusing on sizes it says allows it to provide the most formula.
Reckitt didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on whether it would import extra formula to the U.S.
Write to Saabira Chaudhuri at [email protected]
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