Even with two shipments of baby formula landing in the United States from Europe this week, it could still be weeks before shelves in supermarkets are stocked with the necessary goods. That is a terrifying ordeal for Winston-Salem mom Tori Idol, who said she leaves the stores in tears in recent weeks when she goes shopping for baby formula.
That is the reason why Idol started a Facebook group called Formula Finders of the Triad. She wanted to connect mothers in the Triad and beyond in order to help them feed their babies. Idol told WFMY News the day that she started this group, she was in the Target parking lot on Lawndale Drive. She cried her heart out in a call to her husband, saying "There's nothing. What are we gonna do."
Idol has a 4-month-old son that is formula fed. After that breakdown, Idol knew she needed to do something to help not only herself but other moms as well find formula. Idol said there were already 100 members within twenty minutes of creating the Facebook group.
Facebook group now has hundreds of members
It has proven to be a hit among concerned mothers, with hundreds of moms from Winston-Salem, Greensboro, and even as far as the state of Florida now members of the Facebook group. People in this network share photos of store shelves that have formula, sell formula they no longer need, and also ask for help in finding specific kinds of formula.
When asked about the current formula situation, Idol said "I think we are making ways toward change. I think that soon we will get back to where we need to be, but going from completely empty shelves to some shipments you have a lot of moms that are still panicked and they're going to do what they have to do for their infant and that usually means they're going to stock up. So that small amount that becomes available soon will be depleted."
The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services has also launched a webpage with information on multiple safe options for babies and infants if their formula is not in stock.
Califf tells lawmakers baby formula shortage to end in July
Idol and other mom's formula worries will not cease anytime soon with Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Robert Califf telling lawmakers that it will take until July before store shelves across the United States are filled with baby formula again.
Califf said during his testimony before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee that it is going to be gradual improvement up to probably somewhere around two months until the shelves are replete again.
CNBC reported that Abbott plans to resume production at its facility in Sturgis, Michigan, on June 4, and it will start shipping out its specialty formula EleCare on June 20. Abbott has previously said that it would take six to eight weeks for its formula to arrive in stores once production restarts.
