Baby formula shortages have parents worried

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH)– Kayzie Weedman’s daughter has several food allergies. She needs a very specific baby formula.

“You stand and look at the aisle, and your stomach just drops. What are you going to give your child? They need this to survive, so what are you going to do?” Weedman questioned.

Within the last couple of months, Weedman says she has gone to the store to get formula, only to find empty shelves. Across the country, parents are having a hard time finding formula, partly because of supply chain issues, and because of a Similac recall. Carah Kendall’s son was born two months premature. He relies on a higher caloric formula to help him grow, one Carah has had a hard time finding.

“You start to panic, like am I going to be able to feed my child? I’m like, why is this not a bigger story? If there’s not enough formula? This is scary,” Kendall said.

The Kendall’s go through one can of formula a week, which means they are constantly looking for formula.

“If everybody’s out there and they’re trying to find their specific kind of formula, and they can’t find it, so they’re on their second choice, or third choice. I’m on my like, some random choice, the only one available at Costco is the one I got,” Kendall said.

Kayzie says it’s hard making the decision to feed her daughter something that she knows she’ll have a reaction to.

“If I put the bottle near her face, she just starts screaming crying because she knows that formula makes her feel really sick. She knows she has to eat it because she’s hungry, but she knows what it’s going to do to her body,” Weedman said.