Infant Formula Prices and Availability: An Interim Report to Congress

Victor Oliveira, Mark Prell, Elizabeth Frazao, David Smallwood

E-FAN No. (EFAN01-006) 34 pp, April 2001

This interim report responds to Congress's request for a study on the number of suppliers of infant formula in each State or major marketing area and comparison of the costs of formula that is included in the USDA's Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) versus that of other formula. Infant formula from the three major manufacturers, which accounts for 99 percent of all sales, was available in supermarkets in each of 64 market areas examined. Additionally, products in powder form from a fourth manufacturer were available in supermarkets in 83 percent of the market areas. Preliminary results indicate that within the market areas, there is not a clear relationship between a formula's being the WIC contract brand and its having the highest average retail price.

Keywords: Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women Infants and Children, WIC, Infant formula, FANRR, E-FANRR, Food Assistance and Nutrition Research Program

In this report ...

Chapters are in Adobe Acrobat PDF format.

• Abstract, Contents, Summary, 49 kb
• Introduction, 14 kb
• Overview of the WIC Program, 20 kb
• WIC Infant Formula Rebate Program, 23 kb
• Domestic Infant Formula Market, 28 kb
• Source of Data, 118 kb
• Availability of Infant Formula, 218 kb
• Retail Price of Infant Formula, 187 kb
• Conclusions, 10 kb
• References, 16 kb
• Appendix, 16 kb

• Entire report, 593 kb

Updated date: April 1, 2001