‘It’s pure panic’: Parents of twins in Florida spent more than 4 hours driving to find baby formula

Schmidt moved to Florida from New York in March in search of a lower cost of living. Erik Schmidt is working remotely as a graphic designer while Kelly just got a new job as an office manager at a local church. They were looking to stock up on a formula for their upcoming two-day trip to Walt Disney World when they encountered a slap A nationwide shortage of infant formula.

“It’s pure panic,” Kelly Schmidt said. When she saw the empty shelf, she started texting her mother, who was watching the twins. I avoided calling, although it could have been faster. She said she was not in a position to speak.

“Because I’m panicking,” she said. “And if I talk to someone now, I will cry, I will scream at her for no reason. Like something bad is going to happen. I just need to focus on what we are doing and not deal with anything else.”

ABT Abbott,
+ 1.77%
Similac infant formula recall worsened in February lack of infant formula That started late last year due to supply chain disruptions. Across the country, parents are scrambling to find a middle ground Panic hoarding, new buying restrictions and rising prices due to lack of supply.

Formula is the only safe alternative to breast milk, and making it yourself is not an option. President Joe Biden on Friday I promised steps to remedy the shortage“There is nothing more urgent that we are working on,” he said.

Go-to Up & Up Gentle for the Schmidt twin is TGT’s goal,
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A brand of infant formula store, it is not part of Abbott’s safety recall. However, the cascading effects of Abbott’s company recall have hit the Schmidt family and their twins, Lily and Jameson, though. Just a week or two ago, the shortage wasn’t apparent when Eric went to the store and got his usual supplies.

“If it was the shortage at that time, it wasn’t that bad,” he said. “I don’t know when it actually started, and I don’t even know why or how it happened, it’s just there, empty shelves, like a ‘boom’.”

After finding their empty target shelf, and after hours of futile searching for their usual brand or something close, the Schmidt family ended up buying a carton of milk from a brand they had never tried or heard of before. It was the only thing available. Schmidts Up & Up Gentle are used to feed their twins because it does not upset their stomachs, and is cheaper than Enfamil Gentlease.

Then the search continued into the night as the two turned to the Internet. They discovered that discount supermarket chain Aldi carried a formula that was supposed to be gentle on children’s stomachs, and that there were four or five Aldi stores within a few hours’ drive of them.

The next morning, Eric was waiting for the doors at Aldi to open at 9am, with no luck. He made trips to three other stores, but at about 10:30 in the morning he found what he was looking for: Little Journey Gentle, the Aldi equivalent of their regular brand.

“They only have six left. I left two on the shelf because I don’t want to be that guy,” he said.

The couple said they usually need 15 to 16 bottles of milk mixture for the twins per day, and their usual goal could be to make 36 bottles. With a slightly smaller Aldi packaging, they said the four cans they found — which required “six vigorous hours” of driving and searching online overnight — would likely keep them for about a week.

“Even without the imperfection, when he goes to the store to get enough stuff for two weeks, because we have twins, people look at him like he’s a milk-storing monster,” said Kelly Schmidt. “Now there is not enough. We do not have one child, we have two children, so we need to double the amount the average person uses.”

Target, Walmart, Aldi and Enfamil did not respond to requests for comment.

On Wednesday, Abbott Laboratories said they should be able to get some baby milk products Back on shelves in July. Meanwhile, the Biden administration Measures rolled Including importing more formula from abroad to address the shortage.

While she waits for supplies to return to normal, Kelly Schmidt said she plans to keep checking Target’s website and will be ready to order her family’s regular brand as soon as it looks like it’s been restocked. It also monitors the supply of Enfamil Gentlease, a brand the twins have used before but that’s twice the price of Target One.

The husband’s plight resonated with friends near and far. Eric Schmidt said they posted on Facebook about their situation and received messages of support, where friends promised to monitor the formula for them.

If the shortage continues until July, the pair is not sure what to do. Kelly said breastfeeding is not an option because her milk has dried up for months.

‘I don’t even know, get it when we find it?’ Kelly Schmidt said of how they plan to feed the twins after they consumed Aldi cans. If they can’t find more to use now, they might try some natural formulas – not the kind that’s gentler on babies’ stomachs. Although it’s not perfect, Kelly Schmidt said, it’s a choice.

“We can bring them back to a normal state, and that varies with their stomachs, but at least they will eat,” she said.