President Joe Biden's Operation Fly Formula tacked on a fifth flight to import baby formula amid the national shortage. The plane from Cologne, Germany, will land on a runway in Fort Worth, Texas, on June 9.
Enough formula for about 1.6 million 8-ounce bottles of Nestlé's SupremePro Stage 1 infant formula will be on board. In total, Operation Fly Formula has delivered the equivalent of 1.5 million 8-ounce Nestlé bottles with 41 million more on the way, according to a White House press release.
Five recent updates on the supply shortage:
1. The nation faced a 74 percent out-of-stock rate in the last week of May.
2. Abbott, the Michigan-based infant formula plant that shut down for months, resumed its production June 4. The company plans for the formula to be on shelves around June 20.
3. The Federal Trade Commission is investigating the baby formula shortage.
The FTC will "examine the infant formula industry to identify the factors that created such a fragile market, where a single disruption at a single plant can jeopardize supply," a statement from the agency said.
4. Physicians advised parents to not dilute formula since adding water lowers the calorie intake for infants. They also warned against using other milk substitutes.
5. The FDA forecasted the shortage to last until July and recommended pharmacies stockpile the product as production gradually returns to normal levels.