A Flood at Abbott Baby Formula Plant in Michigan Halts Production for “Weeks”

Abbott is halting production of baby formula at a recently reopened Michigan facility due to damage from severe weather, the company said on Wednesday.

Severe thunderstorms and heavy rains have flooded parts of an Abbott baby formula plant in Sturgis, Michigan, according to the company. As a result, Abbott has stopped production of its EleCare baby formula. The company said cleanup efforts at the plant could delay the release of new baby formula from the Sturgis facility for weeks.

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“These torrential storms produced significant rainfall in a short period of time — overwhelming the city’s stormwater system in Sturgis, Mich., and resulting in flooding in parts of the city, including areas of our plant,” Abbott said in a statement on Wednesday.

“As a result, Abbott has stopped production of its EleCare specialty formula that was underway to assess damage caused by the storm and clean and re-sanitize the plant,” the company added. “We have informed FDA and will conduct comprehensive testing in conjunction with the independent third party to ensure the plant is safe to resume production. This will likely delay production and distribution of new product for a few weeks.”

Abbott said it has an “ample existing supply of EleCare” and other specialty formulas to meet consumer demand until it can restart production at the Michigan plant.

The Abbott baby formula plant in Sturgis had reopened earlier this month after a nearly four-month mandated closure. The plant was shut down by the Food and Drug Administration after the agency received complaints of infants falling ill with bacterial infections after consuming formula made in the plant.

The head of the FDA said on Wednesday that he was aware of the “unfortunate setback” at Abbott’s Sturgis facility but claimed there is “more than enough” baby formula on the market to meet demand.

“Today, we were made aware of the weather-related situation at Abbott’s Sturgis, Mich. facility. I personally spoke to the CEO tonight and we discussed our shared desire to get the facility up and running again as quickly as possible,” FDA Commissioner Robert Califf tweeted.

“While this is an unfortunate setback and a reminder that natural weather events can also cause unforeseen supply chain disruptions, I want to reassure consumers the all-of-government work to increase supply means we’ll have more than enough product to meet current demand,” he added.

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Because of increased production from Abbott and other makers, the amount of baby formula available for consumers now “exceeds the demand for formula prior to the recall,” Califf said.

The commissioner said the FDA would ensure Abbott can “quickly” resume production of “safe” baby formula at the Sturgis facility.