Quebec mothers are being forced to visit dozens of pharmacies to find formula milk, worried they may run out of milk amid ongoing shortages.
Since the birth of her daughter in September, Amélie Couture has made it a habit to traverse the stores of Arvida, Jonquière, Kénogami and Chicoutimi in search of precious boxes of enfamil milk.
“It’s a race every week to find some,” sighs the 26-year-old mother, who also asked her family to keep an eye out.
In Quebec, Laurence Riou visits up to five stores a day on her “powdered milk hunt” that her 5.5-month-old daughter needs.
“I’m lucky, I have a car, but I’m thinking of those who use public transport…” she says.
empty shelves
Families across the province are struggling with empty shelves or a very small inventory of brands and types of infant formula.
Marcel Tremblay/QMI Agency
Many pharmacies have sparsely stocked aisle shelves for infant formula.
This is despite the efforts of pharmacists, explains Pierre-Marc Gervais of the Quebec Association of Owner Pharmacists (AQPP).
“We even wanted to order 8 trucks [de lait maternisé] tomorrow morning we couldn’t because there aren’t any. We are at the end of the supply chain,” he explains.
While since last summer the shortage has mainly affected specialty products, it is now also extending to regular preparations, emphasizes the Senior Director of Pharmaceutical Services at AQPP. But, in his opinion, the problem lies mainly at the level of choice.
“The cheapest options […] have often been out of stock since autumn 2022,” emphasizes a Health Canada website on the subject.
This shortage is due to the closure of a factory in the United States that was making several popular supplements in Canada, we can read there.
And if the factory resumed production last July, it’s not expected to return to full capacity until 2023.
Big brands like Similac, Enfamil or Nestlé also recognize that they are currently experiencing significant delivery difficulties on their respective websites.
needless fear
For new parents, this situation causes permanent and completely unnecessary anxiety.
“I tell my friends, ‘If you have the opportunity to breastfeed, do it, it’s one less stress,'” testifies Amélie Couture, who has visited dozens of stores since giving birth to little Emma. .
PHOTO PROVIDED
Amélie Couture, Emma’s mother, regularly struggles to find formula milk around Arvida to feed her.
Faced with a standoff, some moms are turning to Kijiji or Marketplace for the coveted formula milk, a practice the AQPP discourages.
“We can’t stop people from being creative, but it’s a somewhat sensitive product. I would buy it from a reputable seller to ensure its safety,” says Mr Gervais.
The latter instead recommends parents to choose a brand that the child is used to but change the format, for example to switch from powdered milk to a ready-to-drink preparation.
Health Canada had not answered our questions at the time of publication.