The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Tuesday launched an inquiry into the ongoing shortage of baby formula in the United States.
In a statement, the FTC said the inquiry seeks information on the “nature and prevalence of any deceptive, fraudulent, or otherwise unfair business practices aimed at taking advantage of families during this shortage.”
The inquiry also seeks to find out what factors “have led to concentration in the infant formula market and the fragility of the supply chains for these crucial products,” the FTC said.
Press coverage of the ongoing baby formula shortage increased in recent months after Abbott Laboratories, a top U.S. supplier of baby formula, announced a recall of several lines of powdered formula on Feb. 17, and voluntarily shut down a key plant in Sturgis, Michigan, on the same day. The plant produces up to one-quarter of the country’s baby formula….