So this article is full of libertarian nonsense like loosening labelling and nutrition requirements. It's missing some key elements in favor of stoking the anti-regulation, free trade bonfire....
So this article is full of libertarian nonsense like loosening labelling and nutrition requirements. It's missing some key elements in favor of stoking the anti-regulation, free trade bonfire. There are some good points regarding tarriffs and needlessly subsidizing US dairy, but here's a far better evaluation.
But on top of all the production issues, formula is not just arbitrarily interchangeable, non-parents might not get this. Some is to cover dietary restrictions (like dairy free!), and others are simply due to acclimation...if rhe baby's sole food source drastically changes, it's a recipie for a grumpy, gassy, sleep deprived baby. Which as any parent will tell you, is a fate worse than hell, especially if it's poorly timed with a sickness or teething. If you don't believe me, go vegan for a month and then spend 3 days eating nothing but meat and cheese for a pretty good comparison on your digestive tract.
So when the potentially deadly recall happened in February, a lot of parents switched, and now baby is acclimated to another formula. Lingering fears for Similiac remain. But the other manufacturers did not begin ramping up production in response, making it even worse. So there's a supply shortage and demand surge on the more-trusted brands, and the largeat producer also having supply issues.
It's a terrible situation, one I think would best be handled by nationalized production and rationing. But that's true of many things.
I don’t have enough background to make any definitive statements, but these arguments don’t obviously seem like nonsense. It’s not clear to me why the government shouldn’t have the flexibility to...
I don’t have enough background to make any definitive statements, but these arguments don’t obviously seem like nonsense. It’s not clear to me why the government shouldn’t have the flexibility to temporarily change labeling or nutrition requirements to allow some imports in a crisis. Would American babies be harmed by eating Canadian infant formula, for example? When would a mother traveling with her baby need to worry about buying locally? Shouldn’t this decision be based on the real risks?
It seems kind of parochial to assume that the US regulatory process is the only one that’s any good for overseeing the manufacture of safe and nutritious formula. Based on its reputation for consumer product safety, I wouldn’t want to allow imports from China, but there ought to be some countries that do a good job. My understanding is that infant mortality in the US is higher than many other countries, which seems suggestive that they’re not doing too badly at feeding babies.
From the outside, though, I can only ask the questions. Answering it would require real expertise.
Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is announcing a guidance that outlines increased flexibilities regarding importation of certain infant formula products to further increase the availability of infant formula across the country while protecting the health of infants. The agency is encouraging infant formula manufacturers worldwide to take advantage of these flexibilities.
[...] [...] [...] (Note: I'm not familiar with this author (who seems to be a libertarian), but it seems like a pretty detailed and fact-based article.)
[T]he United States maintains high tariff barriers to imports of formula from other nations—all part of our government’s longstanding subsidization and protection of the politically powerful U.S. dairy industry. Imports of formula from most places, such as the European Union, are subject to a complex system of “tariff rate quotas,” under which already-high tariffs (usually 17.5 percent, but it depends on the product) increase even further once a certain quantity threshold is hit.
[...]
[T]he United States also imposes significant “non-tariff barriers” on all imports of infant formula. Most notable are strict FDA labeling and nutritional standards that any formula producer wishing to sell here must meet. Aspiring manufacturers also must register with the agency at least 90 days in advance and undergo an initial FDA inspection and then annual inspections thereafter. And the FDA maintains a long “Red List” of non-compliant products that are subject to immediate detention upon arriving on our shores. As a result, the FDA routinely issues notices that it has seized “illegal” (e.g., improperly labeled) infant formula from overseas:
[...]
Compounding issues in the U.S. market is the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children program (called “WIC”), which provides vouchers for low-income Americans [...] Various reports estimate that WIC sales constitute about half of all infant formula sales in the United States.
[...]
the WIC program’s use of sole supplier contracts has created a problem specific to the current crisis because, as noted above, the big FDA recall just happened to hit the very producer—Abbott—holding most of the WIC contracts. So we have tons of WIC customers forced to find other options and therefore added stress on the U.S. market:
(Note: I'm not familiar with this author (who seems to be a libertarian), but it seems like a pretty detailed and fact-based article.)
Yeah, The Dispatch is one of my preferred sources for a more conservative PoV (along with Reason, The Bulwark, the AEI, WSJ, and occasionally National Review). It counts Jonah Goldberg and David...
Yeah, The Dispatch is one of my preferred sources for a more conservative PoV (along with Reason, The Bulwark, the AEI, WSJ, and occasionally National Review). It counts Jonah Goldberg and David French among its authors.
So this article is full of libertarian nonsense like loosening labelling and nutrition requirements. It's missing some key elements in favor of stoking the anti-regulation, free trade bonfire. There are some good points regarding tarriffs and needlessly subsidizing US dairy, but here's a far better evaluation.
The more severe recall was due to Similiac's potential deadly bacterial infection in a domestic production facility is the real exacerbating factor. Funny how they don't mention that one, but I digress. The FDA has Similac under more scrutiny while they investigate, so they're playing it extra safe elsewhere to avoid getting hit harder.
But on top of all the production issues, formula is not just arbitrarily interchangeable, non-parents might not get this. Some is to cover dietary restrictions (like dairy free!), and others are simply due to acclimation...if rhe baby's sole food source drastically changes, it's a recipie for a grumpy, gassy, sleep deprived baby. Which as any parent will tell you, is a fate worse than hell, especially if it's poorly timed with a sickness or teething. If you don't believe me, go vegan for a month and then spend 3 days eating nothing but meat and cheese for a pretty good comparison on your digestive tract.
So when the potentially deadly recall happened in February, a lot of parents switched, and now baby is acclimated to another formula. Lingering fears for Similiac remain. But the other manufacturers did not begin ramping up production in response, making it even worse. So there's a supply shortage and demand surge on the more-trusted brands, and the largeat producer also having supply issues.
It's a terrible situation, one I think would best be handled by nationalized production and rationing. But that's true of many things.
I don’t have enough background to make any definitive statements, but these arguments don’t obviously seem like nonsense. It’s not clear to me why the government shouldn’t have the flexibility to temporarily change labeling or nutrition requirements to allow some imports in a crisis. Would American babies be harmed by eating Canadian infant formula, for example? When would a mother traveling with her baby need to worry about buying locally? Shouldn’t this decision be based on the real risks?
It seems kind of parochial to assume that the US regulatory process is the only one that’s any good for overseeing the manufacture of safe and nutritious formula. Based on its reputation for consumer product safety, I wouldn’t want to allow imports from China, but there ought to be some countries that do a good job. My understanding is that infant mortality in the US is higher than many other countries, which seems suggestive that they’re not doing too badly at feeding babies.
From the outside, though, I can only ask the questions. Answering it would require real expertise.
Speaking of:
FDA Encourages Importation of Safe Infant Formula and Other Flexibilities to Further Increase Availability
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[...]
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(Note: I'm not familiar with this author (who seems to be a libertarian), but it seems like a pretty detailed and fact-based article.)
Yeah, The Dispatch is one of my preferred sources for a more conservative PoV (along with Reason, The Bulwark, the AEI, WSJ, and occasionally National Review). It counts Jonah Goldberg and David French among its authors.