DENVER — Denver7 is in the community after noticing that some types of Enfamil infant formula were running low at stores in the Denver metro area. After searching for answers, we learned there is no formula shortage regarding Enfamil products.
Mead Johnson, the parent company of Enfamil, said "pantry loading" due to the port strike could be why some store shelves are empty. The company sent Denver7 the following statement:
"Mead Johnson is actively producing and shipping baby formula products to retailers in Colorado, and nationwide, to ensure availability. While some of our specialty formulas were briefly impacted by a tornado that hit Indiana this summer, we are manufacturing normally now and not experiencing any disruption in supply or delivery of baby formula. However, we are aware that news of a port strike earlier this month understandably triggered ‘pantry-loading’ across many consumer products. We continually monitor and respond to changes in demand and will further investigate your concerns to ensure Mead Johnson is doing everything possible for families to have continued access to our products.”
With this statement, we talked with Jack Buffington, the director of supply chain management at the University of Denver, to examine the impact pantry loading can have.
"So people hear on the news that there's a strike, and then they think of the things they need the most and think it's a good idea to buy it. And some people may just buy one or two," he said.
Buffington explained that such panic buying causes a domino effect, leading to empty shelves as people stock up more than usual.
"You go to the supermarket, and all the shelves are full, and you start to see some holes in them. And then, instead of buying two, you buy four. And then that becomes a problem for the supplier because they created a forecast," Buffington said.
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