U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal called on Congress to provide more funding for food oversight, an additional $20 million, and create ‘The Office of Food Safety,’ a separate agency from the Food and Drug Administration, to prioritize and focus solely on food.
“The FDA has fallen short of what it should be doing,” Blumenthal said, insisting that is why there has been a separate inspector general investigation into the closure of the Abbott baby formula plant in Michigan last year that caused a massive infant formula shortage across the country.
“The simple fact is we are still near crisis. We are only one plant closing away from another infant formula crisis,” said Blumenthal.
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The senator went to the ‘The Diaper Bank of Connecticut’ in North Haven to make his argument and said The Diaper Bank was a source of relief for families during the formula shortage.
The Diaper Bank was able to provide formula for 3,000 babies, according to Janet Stolfi Alfano, the executive director. “There has been a little bit of improvement, but we do know that some of our families that we serve are still struggling to access formula in the quantities that they need and the brands that they need.” The Diaper Bank is also still struggling to purchase formula in bulk.
There has also been progress in making it easier for mothers to order formula through WIC and allow more varieties to qualify.
