ATLANTA — One of the biggest baby formula manufacturers in the U.S. is recalling two batches of formula due to possible contamination.
Reckitt said it's acting out of "an abundance of caution" by voluntarily recalling two batches of 12.9-ounce cans of Enfamil ProSobee Simply Plant-Based Infant Formula.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said more than 145,000 cans could be affected.
Similar bacteria concerns led Abbott to issue a massive recall last year, which played a role in the nationwide baby formula shortage.
Worried mothers, including Katie Jackson, said they have already been struggling to find formula.
"It's been one of those things that weighs heavy on you. It's really upsetting whenever you're trying to find it, and you're just going to store after store after store. It gets to you really hard," she said. "I'm like, 'I cannot fail you.' Your child's life depends on it."
Georgia's Department of Public Health said this recall will impact about 2,200 Georgia families who receive WIC, plus the many other families who use this brand.
On Tuesday afternoon, shelves at several grocery stores were either empty or had signs, reading "limited availability due to supplier production issues."
Jackson said she's had to drive up to two hours to find formula for her four-month-old son.
"It's like one of those things you are tunnel vision, I'm going to find this formula for my baby today. You just gotta get out there and find it. It's super hard and super frustrating when you've been to 5, 6, 7 stores, and you can't find not even one can," she said.
Beth Barber who founded the Formula Mama's Georgia Facebook page said this recall could make it harder for all moms to access formula.
"The plant base is for babies who can't have milk proteins at all, because even regular formula has milk proteins in them," she said. "So babies who are on plant-based normally can't breastfeed, and they can't take normal formula. There's got to be an alternative made by a different company. But that's all going to be bought up."
Reckitt calls this an "isolated situation," but urges anyone who may have purchased the affected product to return it for a refund or throw it out.
For Yuanivel Otero, the formula shortage has added another challenge to being a first-time mom.
"It's tough," she said. "It's very scary to kind of try to think of, 'What if I run out of it and I can't feed my child?'"
Otero, whose son relies on a specialized, hypoallergenic formula, has had to find ways around this shortage.
"When we're running low, we started buying the other brands hypoallergenic. So generic brands or the store brand. But it was just not setting in his stomach," Otero said. "He's he had a lot more spit-ups and a lot more reflux. We knew that it could be the fix if we ever run out, but it wouldn't be the one that we want to replace it with."
She has relied on Facebook groups, websites and family members from out of state.
"I check on Amazon almost every day or every other day. I would check if Amazon would restock. I had pretty much friends and family that were in different states and in Puerto Rico, kind of putting it out there for all our friends and family to kind of keep a lookout," she said.
Jackson has also relied on family, but also on the other mothers she has met on Barber's Facebook group. She said she'll be on the lookout for what other moms are looking for, and they'll do the same.
"It literally has been a lifesaver," she said. "I've even made some really good friends through [the Facebook group]. One particular one... we are on the same formula for our children. So, she looks for mine. I look for hers and we just have each other's backs."
Barber said the mothers have been jumping over hurdles to get formula for their children for a long time.
"So it's clear that we still haven't got back up to the stock we had, prior to the first recall and inspection," she said. "I don't think we've ever caught back up to having the shelves full enough, obviously, or we wouldn't be having Facebook groups of moms searching for formula."
WIC sent 11Alive the following information:
WIC participants and caregivers of infants who have purchased this product should contact Reckitt at 1-800-479-0551 or by email at consumer.relations@rb.com.
Parents and caregivers of infants who have used this product and are concerned about the health of their child should contact their pediatrician or healthcare provider. To date, Reckitt/Mead Johnson indicates the batches in question have tested negative for Cronobacter and other bacteria.
Products identified as part of this recall may be returned to a WIC clinic for replacement benefits. Participants also have the option to return recalled containers of formula to the place of purchase for an exchange or refund. The alternative available for GA WIC participants is the 20.9 oz size of the Enfamil ProSobee Simply Plant-Based Infant formula, which was not impacted by the voluntary recall.
GA WIC benefits are now issued via eWIC, an electronic process for issuing WIC benefits which are loaded onto a card similar to a debit card. eWIC allows participants to purchase one or more containers of formula based on availability, reducing the chance a family will lose benefits.