Abbott baby formula plant floods in Michigan, halting production for 'weeks'

Abbott is halting production of baby formula at a recently reopened Michigan facility due to damage from severe weather, the company said on Wednesday.

Severe thunderstorms and heavy rains have flooded parts of an Abbott baby formula plant in Sturgis, Michigan, according to the company. As a result, Abbott has stopped production of its EleCare baby formula. The company said cleanup efforts at the plant could delay the release of new baby formula from the Sturgis facility for weeks.

"These torrential storms produced significant rainfall in a short period of time — overwhelming the city’s stormwater system in Sturgis, Mich., and resulting in flooding in parts of the city, including areas of our plant," Abbott said in a statement on Wednesday.

"As a result, Abbott has stopped production of its EleCare specialty formula that was underway to assess damage caused by the storm and clean and re-sanitize the plant," the company added. "We have informed FDA and will conduct comprehensive testing in conjunction with the independent third party to ensure the plant is safe to resume production. This will likely delay production and distribution of new product for a few weeks."

Abbott said it has an "ample existing supply of EleCare" and other specialty formulas to meet consumer demand until it can restart production at the Michigan plant.