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Transcript/Script US Baby Formula Shortage (TV)
HEADLINE: Baby Formula Shortage Leads Moms to Buy Breast Milk from Strangers
TEASER: Desperate women strive to find ways to feed their infants
PUBLISHED AT: 6/9/22 at 825p
BYLINE: Carolyn Presutti
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE: Washington
VIDEOGRAPHER: Saqib Ul Islam
VIDEO EDITOR:
SCRIPT EDITORS: Reifenrath, Jepsen
VIDEO SOURCE (S): Original, APTN, zoom
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO _X_
TRT: 1:54
VID APPROVED BY: Jepsen
TYPE:
EDITOR NOTES:))
((INTRO))
[[On Thursday, the first shipments of millions of bottles of Australian baby formula landed in the United States. Yet, the baby formula shortage continues, with women going to extreme measures to feed their babies, including buying breast milk from strangers on social media. Senior Washington Correspondent Carolyn Presutti shows us the impact.]]
((NAT))
((“Should we get you dressed?” or wiggles his feet drinking))
((NARRATOR))
One-year-old George is in for a treat this morning. His formula is mixed with cereal. Mom Lindsey Cates is slowly transitioning to whole milk since this is her last carton of formula and she can’t find any more.
[[RADIO TRACK: One-year-old George crawls and coos as he reaches for his bottle. He’s in for a treat this morning. His morning formula is mixed with cereal. Mom Lindsey Cates is slowly transitioning to whole milk as she shows us her last carton of formula.]]
((Lindsey Cates, Mom))
“We’d go to the next grocery store and then go to the next grocery store, and I would send my husband on little manhunts to, you know, check out the CVS, the Target, the Whole Foods [[numerous stores and pharmacies]] to see if we could still get it.”
((NARRATOR))
Last month, formula started disappearing from store shelves. Supply chain issues were blamed. Contamination and recalls led to the closure of the nation’s largest formula producer, Abbott Laboratories of Michigan. Moms resorted to Facebook and the drastic decision to buy breast milk from strangers.
((Zoom Heather)) ((Zoom))
“I’m a mom of five.”
((NARRATOR)) ((Zoom))
Heather Christian of Minnesota with 6-week-old Izabelle Jadrie is selling her breast milk for a dollar an ounce. One customer buys 50 dollars' worth a week.
((Heather Christian, New Mom)) ((Zoom))
“You can’t produce any milk. You can’t go buy formula because it’s not there. What are you going to do to feed your baby?”
((NARRATOR))
The Michigan formula plant has re-opened. The Biden administration activated the Defense Production Act to use military planes for formula deliveries and is currently receiving millions of bottles of infant formula from Australia. But experts predict shortages to continue beyond supply chain corrections.
[[Radio Track: Abbott's Michigan baby formula plant is now open, but Amy David, who teaches supply chain management at Purdue University, predicts shortages will continue to September.]]
((Amy David, Purdue University))
“We also know that some of the ingredients used in baby formula are going to be harder and harder to get because of other things going on in the world, such as the dependence on sunflower oil from Ukraine.”
((NARRATOR))
By the time formula cans fill the shelves again, George and other wee ones will be moving onto soft food and cow’s milk to grow big and strong.
Carolyn Presutti, VOA News, Washington.
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Location (dateline)Washington D.C.
Embargo DateJune 9, 2022 21:49 EDT
Byline
Carolyn Presutti, VOA News, Washington.
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
