Responses to the 2022 Infant Formula Shortage in the US by Race and Ethnicity

Abstract

Objective: Describe experiences of, and responses to, 2022 infant formula shortages among households with infants aged up to 18 months by race/ethnicity using Household Pulse Survey data.

Methods: Outcomes included whether households were affected by shortages and, if so, 3 nonmutually exclusive response categories (increased breastmilk, obtained formula atypically, and disruptive coping [disruptions to breastmilk and/or formula]) and 1 mutually exclusive response category (solely disruptive coping). Unadjusted shares reporting each were compared using t tests. Regressions adjusting for household characteristics and fixed effects were used to examine associations between race/ethnicity and the outcomes.

Results: Shares affected by shortages declined over time as the formula supply improved. We found no association between race and ethnicity and reports of being affected by a shortage. Among affected households, non-Hispanic Black households were more likely to report disruptive coping than non-Hispanic White households (P = 0.03).

Conclusions and implications: Shortages may have widened racial/ethnic differences in infant feeding practices. Efforts to inform about infant feeding behaviors, improve access to formula, and/or increase participation in assistance programs could be targeted to those most likely to be affected by unexpected shortages or most likely to resort to disruptive coping behaviors. Further research could examine geographic variation in shortages and their long-term effects on infant feeding behaviors and infant and maternal health.

Keywords: Household Pulse Survey; Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children; breastfeeding; infant development; infant formula.