NEW ORLEANS — Moms across the country are on the hunt, desperate to find baby formula.
They are spending hours, even days, going from store to store with the hopes they can keep their child fed. We followed a mom as she searched high and low.
"I've had formula shipped from West Virginia, New Hampshire, I have family in Utah who are looking, I have family in Illinois who are looking just everywhere and most are coming up empty handed," Katy Luttrell said.
Luttrell is one of countless mothers panicking.
"There was one day I went to eleven stores, eleven," she said. "There was two 32oz bottles I was able to get which is two days worth."
Like many moms, the formula shortage hit Luttrell hard.
"Insanity," she described. "It's just crazy, it's terrible."
Her 5-month-old can only tolerate a particular kind, and finding even just one bottle is no easy task.
"There have been many times I've stayed awake, just thinking about what I was going to have to do," she said.
We followed Luttrell from store-to-store Wednesday. However, there was nothing but empty shelves.
"It's the reality of the situation," she said. "I'll check online daily. I check online for the stores and they'll say they have it and you get there and it's totally bare."
Finally, after about two hours, some luck.
"I got the only one in the store," she said.
One six pack of 8-ounce bottles, which she says will last about a day.
"It's sad in 2022 this is where we're at," she said. "You want to protect your kids, want to give them your basic needs and we can't do that."
She's breathing easy today, but with only about a week's worth of food for her little one, her hunt continues. She says she'll be back on the lookout first thing Thursday.
"Just driving around all day, every day," she said.
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