--- title: 'Baby Formula Shortage: Why Target, Walgreens, Walmart and Other Stores Are Restricting Purchases' description: Following a major recall, popular baby formula products are out of stock — and, in some cases, being rationed — at stores across the U.S. authors: - name: Sarah Hansen role: Senior Writer url: https://money.com/author/sarah-hansen/ bio: Sarah Hansen is a senior writer at Money covering all things personal finance. Previously, she covered economic policy and capital markets on the breaking news desk at Forbes. education: Northwestern University, New York University at_money_since: 2021 articles: 347 covers: - Economy and Politics - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Education - Health and Wellness - Housing - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Professional Services - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes social: - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-m-hansen/ former_staff: true editors: - name: Julia Glum role: Managing Editor url: https://money.com/author/julia-glum/ bio: Julia Glum joined Money in 2018 and specializes in covering financial trends that affect everyday Americans' wallets. She also writes Dollar Scholar, a weekly newsletter that teaches young adults how to navigate the messy world of money. education: University of Florida at_money_since: 2018 articles: 453 covers: - Economy and Politics - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Debt - Education - Health and Wellness - Housing - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Professional Services - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes - Technology also_seen_in: - Newsweek - International Business Times - CBS News - Good Morning America - WUSA9 - Pix 11 - The New York Times - Mashable - The Washington Post - CNBC - Politico social: - https://x.com/superjulia - https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-glum published: '2022-04-13T19:41:28.000Z' modified: '2024-01-10T17:24:23.000Z' section: Economy and Politics tags: - News word_count: 685 canonical: https://money.com/baby-formula-shortage-store-limits/ type: NewsArticle source: structured-blocks --- > **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/). ![Editorial photo of an empty baby formula shelf in a supermarket store](https://img.money.com/2022/04/News-Baby-formula-shortage.jpg?crop=0px%2C298px%2C2880px%2C1620px&quality=85) Major retailers like Target and Walgreens are limiting Americans' purchases of baby formula amid an ongoing shortage. As of April 3, 31% of the most popular baby formula products were out of stock, according to data from product research firm Datasembly, which analyzed some 11,000 stores across the United States. The numbers were worse in a handful of states. Datasembly found Connecticut, Delaware, Montana, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Texas and Washington all faced severe shortages in early April, leaving more than 40% of formula out of stock. In three cities — Des Moines, Minneapolis and San Antonio — out-of-stock rates for baby formula exceeded 50%. The shortage follows a February recall of certain Similac, Alimentum and EleCare powdered formulas produced by Abbott Nutrition after four consumer complaints about possible bacterial contamination. The recall was voluntary; Abbott has [said](https://www.similacrecall.com/us/en/general-faqs.html) that none of the products it has distributed has tested positive for the bacteria in the complaints. Ongoing supply chain issues are making it more difficult for producers to replace recalled products, which is contributing to the shortages around the country. The recalled formula is no longer on store shelves, but if you think you previously purchased some, you can [check the product lot number](https://www.similacrecall.com/us/en/product-lookup.html) on Abbott’s website. For more information, read the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's [webpage](https://www.cdc.gov/cronobacter/outbreaks/infant-formula.html) about the Abbott formula products affected by the recalls. ## Is baby formula more expensive now? Datasembly found that formula prices have remained relatively steady despite the growing shortages. The average price of all baby formula products it tracks in January was $24.37, and at that time, just 3.3% of products were out of stock. In March, when the frequency of out-of-stock issues jumped up to nearly 30%, the average price inched up just slightly to $26.21. That’s not to say that rising prices aren’t impacting parents and caregivers. A record-high rate of [inflation](https://money.com/inflation-highest-since-1981-gas-prices/) — recently pegged at 8.5% on an annual basis — means that money simply doesn’t stretch as far as it did last year. The latest [data](https://www.bls.gov/news.release/cpi.t02.htm#cpipress2.f.1) from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that the price of baby food jumped nearly 11% between March 2021 and March 2022. Baby formula is an essential product for millions of families. According to CDC [data](https://www.cdc.gov/breastfeeding/data/reportcard.htm#:~:text=Although%20most%20infants%20born%20in,among%20infants%20born%20in%202016.), just 25.6% of babies born in 2017 in the U.S. were exclusively breastfed through six months of age. Citing the Infant Nutrition Council of America, [CBS News reported](https://www.cbsnews.com/news/baby-formula-shortage-abbott-nutrition-recall-supply-chain-inflation/) this week that manufacturers are ramping up production to cope with the formula shortage. The council advised parents to keep a 10-day to two-week supply of formula available at home. It cautioned against stockpiling further and [recommended](https://infantnutrition.org/five-covid-19-infant-feeding-facts-every-parent-needs-to-know/) that parents only purchase formula from reputable retailers or directly from the manufacturer, according to CBS News. "Our hope is that as production ramps up, that later this spring it should be easier for families across the country," [*USA Today* reported](https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/shopping/2022/04/09/baby-formula-shortage-2022-worsens/9525498002/) Brian Dittmeier, the senior director of public policy for the National WIC Association, said on Instagram Live. In the meantime, some retailers are rolling out baby formula rations. Walgreens has implemented a limit of three formula products per transaction, both online and in store, citing “increased demand and various supplier challenges,” a Walgreens spokesperson told Money via email. Target is limiting some online baby formula purchases, as well. Walmart confirmed to Money that it's restricting formula purchases to five per customer, per child, per day in most stores and online in accordance with a request from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. CVS Health and Kroger [reportedly](https://www.wsj.com/articles/baby-formula-shortage-prompts-rationing-at-target-kroger-walgreens-and-cvs-11649781594) have also established purchase limits on baby formula. The American Academy of Pediatrics [warns against](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/formula-feeding/Pages/How-to-Safely-Prepare-Formula-with-Water.aspx) watering down baby formula to save money and make it last longer. If you are unable to find your baby’s regular formula, the CDC advises contacting your baby’s health care provider for recommendations. ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "@id": "https://money.com/baby-formula-shortage-store-limits/#breadcrumb", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://money.com" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Economy and Politics", "item": "https://money.com/economy-and-politics/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Consumer Goods", "item": "https://money.com/consumer-goods/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Baby Formula Shortage: Why Target, Walgreens, Walmart and Other Stores Are Restricting Purchases" } ] }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://money.com/#website", "url": "https://money.com", "name": "Money", "publisher": { "@id": "https://money.com/#organization" } }, { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://money.com/baby-formula-shortage-store-limits/#webpage", "url": "https://money.com/baby-formula-shortage-store-limits/", "name": "Baby Formula Shortage: Why Target, Walgreens, Walmart and Other Stores Are Restricting Purchases", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://money.com/#website" }, "datePublished": "2022-04-13T19:41:28.000Z", "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://money.com/baby-formula-shortage-store-limits/" }, "inLanguage": "en-US", "breadcrumb": { "@id": "https://money.com/baby-formula-shortage-store-limits/#breadcrumb" }, "dateModified": "2024-01-10T17:24:23.000Z" }, { "@type": "NewsArticle", "headline": "Baby Formula Shortage: Why Target, Walgreens, Walmart and Other Stores Are Restricting Purchases", "articleSection": "Economy and Politics", "image": [ { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://img.money.com/2022/04/News-Baby-formula-shortage.jpg?crop=0px%2C298px%2C2880px%2C1620px&quality=85", "width": 1012, "height": 569, "caption": "News-Baby-formula-shortage" } ], "author": [ { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sarah Hansen", "url": "https://money.com/author/sarah-hansen/", "@id": "https://money.com/author/sarah-hansen/#author", "description": "Sarah Hansen is a senior writer at Money covering all things personal finance. 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