US Health Care Firm Reaches Deal To Reopen Infant Formula Facility

Abbott agreed to enter into a consent decree with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to reopen its infant formula facility.

The American health care firm said in a statement on Monday its agreement with FDA will ensure resuming production of its facility in the state of Michigan and maintaining it.

The consent decree was approved by the US District Court for the Western District of Michigan on Monday.

"Our number one priority is getting infants and families the high-quality formulas they need, and this is a major step toward re-opening our Sturgis facility so we can ease the nationwide formula shortage," Abbott Chairman and CEO Robert B. Ford said in the statement.

The Michigan facility was closed due to bacterial contamination, after four infants who consumed baby formula from the facility fell ill from bacterial infections, and two of whom subsequently died.

While the closure of the facility hurt millions of Americans to access the much-needed infant formula for babies, the FDA announced in a separate statement on Monday that 80% of baby formula was in stock across the US for the week ending May 8.

"The public should rest assured that the agency will do everything possible to continue ensuring that infant and other specialty formulas produced by the company meet the FDA's safety and quality standards, which American consumers have come to expect and deserve," FDA Commissioner Robert M. Califf said.

Abbott, the biggest baby formula manufacturer in the US, said it will restart production in the facility within two weeks, and it would take six to eight weeks before its infant formula product is available on shelves from the time of restart.

The company noted that it would begin production of EleCare, Alimentum and metabolic formulas first, and then begin production of Similac and other formulas. -