"We are deeply sorry and are committed to ensuring that a shortage like this never happens again," Christopher Calamari, executive director of Abbott Nutrition, promised during a hearing before a congressional committee. .

"It will take time" to regain the families' trust, he continued, stressing that the group was doing everything it could to resolve this crisis.

The United States has been experiencing a shortage of baby milk for several months, caused by supply and labor problems linked to Covid-19, then worsened by the closure, in February, of a factory of the manufacturer Abbott in Michigan, after a product recall suspected of causing the deaths of two infants.

“Frankly, the results of the inspection were shocking”, testified for his part Robert Califf the head of the American drug agency (FDA).

He cited "standing water in key equipment that has the potential for bacterial contamination", "leaks on the roof" or even basic hygiene such as hand washing leaving something to be desired.

According to him, his teams have concluded that there is a weak safety culture for the manufacture of a product that is nevertheless "essential" and vital for "the most precious people".

"We continue to believe that there is no conclusive evidence to link our products" to childhood illnesses and deaths attributed to Cronobacter sakazakii bacteria, which was found in an area of ​​Abbott's Sturgis plant, yet said the leader of Abbott.

He insisted that the samples positive for this bacteria "did not come from areas in direct contact" with the baby milk boxes.

The Sturgis plant is one of the largest infant formula plants in the United States, including specialty milks used for children with certain metabolic or allergic conditions.

"No choice"

The American drug agency (FDA) indicated for its part that it had made a series of 24 visits to Sturgis, the last of which was on March 18.

“We knew that stopping the activities of the factory would create supply problems, but we had no choice (to ask to close the factory) given the unsanitary conditions”, insisted Robert Califf.

For his part, he acknowledged that his services had been slow to start up.

But he blamed some problems on Covid.

The FDA was unable to begin its investigation until late January due to employees testing positive for Covid-19 at the Abbott plant.

The FDA process was "too slow" and there was a lack of coordination.

But, he noted, there was no "intentional delay."

First Lady Jill Biden at Dulles Airport on May 25, 2022 as a shipment of baby milk arrives.

The United States faces a rare shortage of this vital infant milk.

Stefani Reynolds AFP

This crisis is such that President Joe Biden announced last week the establishment of an airlift and the use of a law dating from the Cold War to import milk from abroad.

On Wednesday, First Lady Jill Biden went to greet the arrival of the second shipment of the precious milk at Dulles International Airport, near Washington.

A first shipment arrived on Sunday containing more than 31 tonnes of milk cans.

© 2022 AFP