GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga — A Gwinnett County charity is collecting donations of unexpired baby formula during the ongoing nationwide shortage. “Helping Mama” says low income mothers are in desperate need of scarce formula to feed their babies.
“We are getting calls daily not just from moms that need it, but other organizations, health clinics, health departments. We had one mom say she was looking everywhere and was down to less than a week of formula when we gave her some,” said “Helping Mama” Founder Jamie Lackey.
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The charity collects everything a baby, from birth to age 12, would need, including diapers, shoes clothing and more. Last year, the organization served more than 50 thousand individuals. But the focus now is baby formula. They are encouraging mothers who have unused baby formula to donate it for other mothers to use.
“A lot of time it’s a mom that has either switched off of a formula or have outgrown a formula. It can have a long shelf life,” said Lackey.
This week, Governor Brian Kemp renewed an executive order forbidding price gouging of infant formula. The out-of-stock rate for formula rose to 70 percent nationwide. The shortage worsened with the shutdown of a production facility owned by Abbott Nurtrition which makes 40 percent of formulas on the market. The company said it will restart production in June. But formula shortages will likely continue into July.
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In the meantime, Lackey encourages moms to look around the house for unused formula. She says the organization has helped 150 moms so far.
“We encourage people to look in their diaper bags, look in your pantries. If you have that stuff unopened and unexpired. And they have been brining it in. It’s fantastic,” said Lackey.
If you would like to find more information on how to donate formula, check the link below.
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