If you’re a parent or know one, you’ve probably heard stories about how tricky it’s been to find baby formula in the last few years. The Similac shortage isn’t some blip—it’s part of a much bigger infant formula crisis that’s dragged on way longer than most people expected.
Walk into a grocery store between 2022 and 2024, and you could see whole shelves nearly empty where Similac usually sits. Even well into 2025, some parents are still going from store to store just to find the basics. Let’s break down exactly what happened, why it’s still not entirely fixed, and what it means for families trying to feed their babies every day.
How Did We Get Here? The Similac Shortage Timeline
First off, the shortage didn’t start overnight. It’s been a slow burn since early 2022, sparked by a mix of supply chain headaches and safety scares. Think about it: baby formula is something you just expect will be there when you need it. Suddenly, for many, it wasn’t.
By the tail end of 2023, formula inventories were still about 20% below what you’d see before the pandemic. That’s a huge gap, especially for a product parents count on day in and day out. And even now, some powder and liquid formulas are still tough to find on a steady basis.
The Broken Links: Why the Similac Shortage Happened
So, what made Similac so hard to find—and why are some parents still hunting for it? It comes down to a mix of bad luck, tough timing, and some solid misfortune.
Global Supply Chain Chuckholes
Let’s go back to 2020 for a second. The COVID-19 pandemic upended just about every industry, and baby formula was no different. The main ingredients in Similac and other formulas—like certain cow’s milk proteins and vitamins—became much harder to source.
Factories slowed down, delivery schedules slipped, and the costs to make everything went up. Add in labor shortages (just like every industry saw for a while), and production lines started to back up. For formula makers like Abbott, which owns Similac, keeping up with steady demand turned into a real struggle.
It’s easy to think supply chain drama would fade after the pandemic lockdowns ended, but these problems stuck around. Even by 2024, U.S. stores struggled to bounce back to normal inventory levels.
The Abbott Plant Shutdown and FDA Recall
Here’s where things got especially shaky: in February 2022, Abbott Laboratories had to close its biggest plant in Sturgis, Michigan. This wasn’t some small blip on the radar. Abbott is responsible for nearly 40% of all baby formula in the country.
The closure came after the FDA recalled several powder formulas (including Similac) over concerns about a bacteria called *Cronobacter sakazakii*. This is the kind of thing that can be deadly for infants, and there were reports of illnesses—and even some deaths.
Even though Abbott said they couldn’t directly link their formula to the illnesses, they called the recall a necessary step. Still, shutting down their giant factory sent shockwaves through the formula market. Suddenly, a huge chunk of the national supply vanished almost overnight.
It wasn’t just about cleaning up the plant; it takes a while to ramp a facility like that back to full speed. So, even after Abbott restarted production, catching up took months.
Market Weirdness and Red Tape
Then, something totally predictable happened—panic buying. When formula started getting hard to find, parents loaded up on whatever was left. People started seeing their local stores run out, so they grabbed what they could—even if they didn’t need it right away.
This led stores to ration formula sales. In some places, you could only buy three containers per visit, trying to keep things fair. But empty shelves just made people more anxious. It was a cycle that fed on itself.
WIC (Women, Infants, and Children), a government assistance program that helps many families buy formula, got tangled up in the mess, too. The catch? WIC often requires parents to buy specific formula brands—no swapping if a brand is out of stock. That left some families with government money for formula…but store shelves had the wrong kind.
The Human Side: Families and the Mess Left Behind
If you’ve ever needed formula, you get how stressful it is when it’s suddenly not there. By late 2022, about a third of U.S. families said they struggled to get what they needed. Some parents shared stories of driving 30 or 40 miles, sometimes visiting ten stores before finding even one can of Similac.
Others ended up switching brands—sometimes upsetting their babies’ stomachs. The stress spread, and formula swaps became currency in parenting groups online. No one wanted to take risks, but everyone wanted to make sure their babies were fed.
The shortage even hit hospitals and pediatric clinics, especially for babies needing specialized formulas. Older relatives, neighbors, and even out-of-state friends pitched in to help hunt for cans.
Emergency Workarounds: Operation Fly Formula
When things really hit a wall, the government stepped in. “Operation Fly Formula” kicked off, which basically meant using government planes to bring in formula from overseas. This was rare—something you’ll almost never see for everyday supermarket products.
The emergency imports did help ease the worst gaps but didn’t totally fix the market. Most families in need of routine Similac products still faced spotty supply for months.
Some manufacturers ramped up shifts and sped up shipping, but rebuilding a steady flow of formula just takes time. Imports can only bridge so many gaps before local production has to catch up.
What’s Changed: Similac Supply in 2025
Now, it’s 2025, and you might assume everything’s all patched up—but it’s not quite. Stores do look better stocked than they did in 2022. But pick a random big-box retailer, and there’s still a decent chance you’ll see gaps, especially for liquid formulas or specialty blends like Similac Pro Total Comfort.
Researchers say the total supply is still down from where we were in 2019, and the issues seem to pop up in cycles. Sometimes, things look totally normal, but a regional hiccup or another slow shipment can trigger a new round of shortages.
Even now, families with babies who require certain types of formula are playing what feels like the world’s least fun scavenger hunt.
If you follow business news, experts are honest about the outlook—they expect lingering disruptions to continue. Big companies are making progress, but slowdowns in shipping, production, or ingredient shortages can throw off supplies for weeks.
Quick Recap: Key Factors Explained
It helps to see the main drivers of the shortage side by side. Here’s a straightforward summary:
| Factor | Description | Impact |
|—————————-|——————————————————|—————————————-|
| Plant shutdown and recall | Sturgis, MI (Abbott) closed, recall hit Similac | Supply dropped fast, shortages spread |
| Supply chain disruption | Pandemic fallout, labor crunch, raw ingredient holdups| Made formula harder to produce |
| Regulatory constraints | WIC rules strict on which brand/type can be bought | Some parents couldn’t swap brands |
| Panic buying/hoarding | Folks bought more formula “just in case” | Local stores ran out quickly |
| Retail rationing | Limits on how much you could buy at once | Tried to keep more people supplied |
These issues all stacked up, and the effects stuck around far longer than anyone expected.
What Does It All Mean for Parents—and the Industry—Going Forward?
So, where does that leave us now? Truth is, there’s no single fix. The root problems—like supply lines, FDA safety rules, labor shortages, and the realities of big brands like Abbott controlling so much of the market—aren’t solved overnight.
If you’re a parent shopping for formula, there’s more hope than there was in 2022. Shelves usually aren’t completely bare. But the experience of rationing, delayed shipments, and brand-specific benefit limitations really hasn’t faded for everyone.
The industry has taken steps to lessen the impact—more oversight on plant safety, updated emergency import plans, and maybe a little more flexibility around what families can buy with WIC. That said, the underlying system is still fragile. Ongoing disruptions in milk supply, lingering inflation, and shifting regulations mean it doesn’t take much to tip things off balance again.
If you’re trying to keep up with baby formula news or business policy, check out sites like Daily Business Voice for ongoing updates. The story of Similac’s shortage probably isn’t finished yet.
For now, most parents will keep checking shelves, comparing brands, and hoping for fewer surprises the next time they fill their cart. The formula crisis showed just how tightly wound these supply systems really are. Going forward, families—and the industry—are keeping one eye on the shelves, just in case.
Also Read:
