Will Similac and Enfamil, two baby formula companies, send parents free formula through "the state" due to the ongoing formula shortage? No, that's not true: A spokesperson for Abbott, the parent company of Similac, told us that this claim was not true. Although a social media post claimed that the baby formula company Enfamil would also send parents free formula, Lead Stories did not see any evidence of that on the parent company's website.
The claim appeared in a Facebook post published on May 16, 2022. It opened:
Due to the shortage of formula if you call enfamil or similac they will notify the state you can't find any for your child and the state will send you a 6 pack of 12 Oz cans to your address !
This is what the post looked like on Facebook at the time of writing:
The creator of this post did not give any sources for this claim or specify whether "the state" applied to a specific state, or government in general.
Lead Stories reached out to both Similac and Enfamil to ask if this claim was accurate. Abbott Laboratories, the company that oversees the production of Similac, emailed us on May 17, 2022, to say that this claim is incorrect.
Abbott's powdered baby formula was recalled in February 2022, and because of that recall, there has been a shortage of baby formula nationwide. Since that recall, Abbott has been working to make sure as many people as possible can still receive formula. It noted in a May 13, 2022 press release the following points:
Since February:
- We've air shipped millions of cans of infant formula powder into the U.S. from our FDA-registered facility in Cootehill, Ireland.
- We have prioritized infant formula production at our Columbus, Ohio, facility, converting other liquid manufacturing lines into manufacturing Similac liquid ready-to-feed.
- We are offering an increased number and value of coupons available for all our infant formula products, including Similac ready-to-feed, to enable customers to purchase formula, either free or deeply discounted.
- And our other manufacturing facilities are running at full capacity as we continue to prioritize production of infant formula to help replenish the supply in the market.
Nowhere in this press release did Abbott discuss sending Similac formula to U.S. citizens for free.
Lead Stories reached out to Enfamil but did not receive a response as of this writing. However, their parent company website, Reckitt Benckiser Group, has not released a formal statement saying that they will send free Enfamil formula to families. Reckitt Benckiser's newsroom is here. We will update this story when we receive a response from the company.
Other Lead Stories articles concerning baby formula can be found here.
