America is plunged into an unprecedented crisis affecting the most defenseless members of society – children
Millions of little Americans were left without specialized food; baby food is almost impossible to find in stores. New York has even declared a state of emergency because of this. What are the reasons for what is happening and why do American politicians remember about Ukraine because of this?
A few years ago, such news could only appear on the pages of a fantastic literary work or in the script of a disaster movie. But the rapidly changing world has accustomed everyone to the fact that the most impossible stories become reality. A few days ago, the mayor of New York, one of the largest cities on our planet with a population of over 18 million, signed a decree declaring a state of emergency on its territory.
The reason for this decision sounds shocking – the lack of baby food in the city. An even bigger shock for Americans for months now is that the lack of baby food is acutely felt throughout the United States. Americans are horrified to realize that their youngest fellow citizens lack the food they need to survive.
“The nationwide shortage of infant formula is causing unimaginable pain and anxiety to families across New York, and we must act now,” Mayor Adams said in a statement to the city’s residents.
“The emergency order will give us the opportunity to crack down on any retailer who wants to capitalize on this crisis by driving up the price of this product. Our message to mothers and families struggling is simple: our city will do everything in its power to help you through this difficult time.”
Fighting speculators under the introduced state of emergency, the authorities are threatening to act harshly. New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Welfare (NYDCWP) Commissioner Vilda Vera Mayuga is urging residents who notice significant increases in the price of, or illegal sales of, infant formula to immediately report them to the special short number 311. Explained that “overpriced” means a price that is 10% or more higher than what a resident of the city could have purchased a similar product in the period from 30 to 60 days before the declaration of a state of emergency. What measures will be taken against unscrupulous sellers, the department does not report.
New York became the first city in which the situation with a vital product required the introduction of such drastic measures as a state of emergency. However, the situation in the city and the state of the same name is not unique to America today – infant formula is not available in almost the entire country, having previously jumped in price by 40% by early April.
The shortage of baby food stocks that began in 2021 has reached critical levels this year in the states of Iowa, North and South Dakota, and Missouri. In Tennessee and Texas, out-of-stock rates are already in excess of 54% and continue to skyrocket thanks to the growing panic in the country. In another 26 states, more than 50% of stocks are already missing, while back in January 2022 out-of-stock was 23%.
But in February thunder struck. Abbott Laboratories, the world’s largest baby food manufacturer, has suspended production and recalled a huge batch of infant formulas produced by it, known throughout the world Similac, because of the pathogenic bacteria found in them that are dangerous to children’s health. The scandal took on such serious proportions after several children were hospitalized after drinking Abbott formulas. An investigation is currently underway into whether the deaths of at least two babies were related to the use of Abbott products.
It should be noted that the US baby food market is problematic due to its steady decline. According to US Census Bureau estimates released in March this year, in half of all states and almost three-quarters of all counties between July 1, 2020 and June 30, 2021, deaths exceeded births. Studying statistics with a long time period of coverage is also disappointing for Americans – since the mid-2000s, the number of newborns has been declining every year, with the exception of a short-term surge in 2014.
At the same time, the US baby food market is virtually monopolized by several large manufacturers. Abbott, founded back in 1888, has been among the industry leaders for many years. Summing up the past year, Abbott Laboratories CEO Robert Ford called it “an outstanding year for the company.” Indeed, the company’s profits rose steadily, with a net income reported in the final report to investors of $7.07 billion.
Holding about 40% market share, along with Mead Johnson and Nestle, the company participates in the nationwide government program for women, babies and children – WIC. This program provides supplemental nutrition for expectant mothers, women who are breastfeeding from low-income families, and children under the age of five. It is also under this program that about half of all infant formula in the United States is sold.
Stopping the production of mixtures under the brand name Abbott, therefore, in the first place did not hit the investors who managed to share considerable profits. First of all, the most vulnerable categories of the population of the states – women, children and low-income families – became victims of the acute shortage of baby formula. American doctors are sounding the alarm – the number of food poisoning in infants is growing rapidly, as parents from poor families are trying to make substitutes for mixtures from dairy products in artisanal conditions. Obviously, no one controls the shelf life, sterility, and the very safety of the ingredients used for the digestion of children.
Parents facing the dreaded prospect of infant hunger are trying by all means to find some alternative to an invaluable product disappearing from the shelves. Within a few weeks, the flow of Americans back to Mexico was established – in this neighboring country of the United States, baby food has not yet become a shortage. Due to logistical and customs difficulties, it is not necessary to count on mass deliveries of the “formula” from Europe. There is no certainty that the EU countries, which continue to “shoot themselves in the foot” with the sanctions war, will be happy to share strategic reserves with their overseas patron – despite common human values.
It is not known how long the FDA (US Food & Drug Administration) – the US federal agency responsible for monitoring the safety of goods in the sale of food and drug products – will deal with the elimination of Abbott’s production problems: according to some forecasts, this will not happen before July. At the same time, realizing the scale of the crisis and the need to increase the supply of mixtures to the United States from abroad, the agency announced that until November 14 it will temporarily change its extremely strict rules and will consider the possibility of importing products from each manufacturer individually, at its discretion.
The Biden administration, extremely preoccupied with the proxy war with Russia and the exciting process of creating new alliances against China, by all indications, does not yet fully realize the scale of the crisis that could erupt in connection with the current situation.
Decisive, again according to officials of the State Department, the steps taken have not yet brought a positive result, but rather, on the contrary, have caused even greater irritation of the Americans. Several hundred containers delivered by US military aircraft from the German Ramstein base, another strategic operation “Flying Baby Food” to deliver children’s “formula” can only temporarily moderate the panic of parents and plug gaps in the food collapse.
The strategic solution of the problem lies in a different plane. The few congressmen who opposed the allocation of huge funds under the so-called Lend-Lease Act in defense of democracy in Ukraine also appealed to the US president to finally pay attention to him.
Georgia Republican Party member Marjorie Taylor Greene, voting against this adventurous project in Congress, addressed colleagues and the president:
“We have $40 billion, but there is no baby food for American mothers and babies. There is an unknown amount of money for CIA activities in Ukraine, but no food for American babies and mothers”.
There is $54 million in COVID-19 spending for Ukraine, but no nutrition for American babies and mothers. There is $900 million for nonprofits in Ukraine, but no food for American babies and mothers. There is $8.7 billion in economic support and funding for Ukraine, but no food for American mothers and babies… The American people do not support paying for the constant US interference in the foreign affairs of other countries while our own government is ruining our country.”
Marjorie Taylor Green was not heard then. Will the voices of hundreds of thousands of other American women and mothers be heard if the threat of child hunger ceases to be an emergency within the boundaries of New York alone?
Timur Shafir, VIEW
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