INDIANAPOLIS (AP) \u2014 A military plane carrying enough specialty infant formula for more than half a million baby bottles arrived Sunday in Indianapolis,\u00a0the first of several flights\u00a0expected from Europe aimed at relieving a shortage that has sent parents scrambling to find enough to feed their children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
President Joe Biden authorized the use of Air Force planes for the effort, dubbed \u201cOperation Fly Formula,\u201d because no commercial flights were available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The formula weighed 78,000 pounds (35,380 kilograms), White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters aboard Air Force One as Biden flew from South Korea to Japan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack was in Indianapolis to greet the arrival of the first shipment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The flights are intended to provide \u201csome incremental relief in the coming days\u201d as the government works on a more lasting response to the shortage, Brian Deese, director of the White House National Economic Council, said Sunday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Deese told CNN\u2019s \u201cState of the Union\u201d that Sunday\u2019s flight brought 15% of the specialty medical grade formula needed in the U.S., and because of various actions by the government, people should see \u201cmore formula in stores starting as early as this week.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Longer term, he said, the U.S. needs more formula providers \u201cso that no individual company has this much control over supply chains.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Biden administration has struggled to address the nationwide shortage of formula, particularly hypoallergenic varieties. The crisis follows the\u00a0closure of the nation\u2019s largest domestic manufacturing plant in Michigan in February\u00a0due to safety issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The White House has said 132 pallets of Nestle Health Science Alfamino Infant and Alfamino Junior formula was to leave Ramstein Air Base in Germany for the U.S. Another 114 pallets of Gerber Good Start Extensive HA formula were expected to arrive in the coming days. Altogether, about 1.5 million 8-ounce bottles of the three formulas, which are hypoallergenic for children with cow\u2019s milk protein allergies, are expected to arrive this week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Indianapolis was chosen because it is a Nestle distribution hub. The formula will be offloaded into FedEx semitractor-trailers and taken to a Nestle distribution center about a mile away where the company will do a standard quality control check before distributing the supplies to hospitals, pharmacies and doctor\u2019s offices, according to an administration official on site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nestle said that over the past few months it has worked \u201caround the clock\u201d to address the formula shortage and help meet demand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe have significantly increased the amount of our formulas available to consumers by ramping up production and accelerating general product availability to retailers and online, as well as through hospitals and home health care for those most vulnerable,\u201d the company said in a release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAt Nestle we are absolutely committed to doing everything we can to get parents and caregivers the formula they need so their children can thrive,\u201d it added. \u201cWe prioritized these products because they serve a critical medical purpose as they are for children with cow\u2019s milk protein allergies.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Under \u201cOperation Fly Formula,\u201d the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services are authorized to request Department of Defense support to pick up overseas infant formula that meets U.S. health and safety standards, so it can get to store shelves faster, according to the USDA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Alfamino is primarily available through hospitals and home health care companies that serve patients at home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
U.S. regulators and the manufacturer, Abbott Nutrition,\u00a0hope to have its Michigan plant reopened\u00a0next week, but it will take about two months before product is ready for delivery. The Food and Drug Administration this week eased importation requirements for baby formula to try to ease the supply crunch, which has left store shelves void of some brands and some retailers rationing supply for parents nervous about feeding their children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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