Abbott Laboratories faces US criminal investigation over baby formula

• The Justice Department is looking into the Michigan facility of Abbott Laboratories.
• The facility was at the centre of the US baby formula shortfall last year.
• A shortage that started as a result of supply chain problems was made worse by the plant’s closure.

The Justice Department is looking into the Michigan facility of Abbott Laboratories (ABT.N), which was at the centre of the US baby formula shortfall last year, according to a Wall Street Journal article on Friday.

The criminal inquiry is being carried out by attorneys with the Justice Department’s consumer protection department, the paper claimed, citing sources with knowledge of the situation.

“DOJ has informed us of its investigation and we’re cooperating fully,” an Abbott spokesman told the media.

Following reports of bacterial infections in infants who had consumed goods prepared at the Michigan factory, Abbott, the largest U.S. supplier of infant formula, recalled Similac and other infant formula products in February 2022.

An infant formula shortage that had started in the US as a result of supply chain problems brought on by the pandemic was made worse by the plant’s closure and subsequent product recalls.

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