Sara Owens, of Florence County, said she was hunting for baby formula for his six-month-old daughter, Namoi, amid a nationwide shortage when she encountered a dad break into tears after driving from store to store looking for his daughter's brand of formula. .

She told Fox News on Friday that the situation has not gotten any better since the encounter with the dad three weeks ago as Murray Kessler, the CEO of formula giant Perrigo, warned that the shortage would last all year. .

Sara Owens, of Florence County, South Carolina, said she was searching for baby formula for her six-month-old daughter, Naomi, (above, pictured together) when she encountered a dad break down at her local Walmart because he couldn't find his daughter's formula brand.

Abbott Laboratories, the biggest baby formula supplier in the U.S., ceased production at its Michigan plant in February 2022 amid reports of fatal bacterial infections.

The inspection report revealed the plant 'did not maintain' clean and sanitary conditions in at least one building that manufactured, processed, packaged or held baby formula.

FDA officials also observed poor hand washing among Abbott plant staff who 'worked directly with infant formula.'.

The employee accused the plant of lax cleaning practices, falsifying records, releasing untested infant formula, and hiding information during an FDA audit in 2019, among other issues. .

Additionally, the report stated plant workers were did not wear the 'necessary protective material' when working directly with infant formula.

health officials urgently warn parents against using three popular baby formulas manufactured at the Abbott plant in Michigan.

The FDA also said it is investigating four reports of infants who were hospitalized after consuming the formula, including one who died.

February 28: Abbott Laboratories expanded its recall of Similac baby formulas after a second infant who was exposed to the powdered baby formula died.

May 10: Abbott releases a statement to DailyMail.com claiming 'thorough investigation' by the FDA and Abbott revealed 'infant formula produced at our Sturgis facility is not the likely source of infection in the reported cases and that there was not an outbreak caused by products from the facility'.

Department of Agriculture (USDA) urging leaders to address the formula shortage and work to prevent future threats to infant health.

Abbott announced it would take up to ten weeks for the company to get baby formula to retailers once the Sturgis plant reopens.

Abbott also said: 'After a thorough review of all available data, there is no evidence to link our formulas to these infant illnesses.'.

She told WMBF that trips to the store now involve her splurging on the baby formula she can find due to the uncertainty of when the shelves will be restocked. .

At the request of the FDA, Perrigo is focusing on four items: the store-brand versions of Similac Pro Sensitive and Pro Advance, and Enfamil Gentle Ease and Infant, Kessler said.

The closure of Abbott's infant-formula plant in Sturgis, Michigan, exacerbated national pandemic-related shortages, leading to empty shelves in big box stores and supermarkets and panicked parents. 

Perrigo is working with retailers including Walmart and Target Corp so they 'get something each week,' Kessler said

Another added: '@POTUS I'm not a mind reader, I listen to people talking about Baby Formula & look at store shelves, I could see the problem weeks ago

Biden said on Friday he expects more formula on shelves in weeks

French food and beverage company Danone, which also makes infant formulas, said the 'unexpected Abbott Nutrition recall in February has led to a surge in demand in the U.S