Residents in rural areas hit hard by baby formula shortage

SANTA FE, Tenn. (WSMV) - The baby formula shortage is hitting families in Middle Tennessee hard, especially moms in rural areas with few shopping options.

Danielle Knific and her kids live in Santa Fe, Tennessee. It is a small, unincorporated community in Maury County. “Just from where I live, it is 20 minutes to go to the closest Kroger,” Knific said.

Those 20-minute trips to get baby formula for her one-year-old have turned into longer one-hour trips. She can’t find it anywhere. “The most I have been is two days to 14 stores, and that was two counties,” Knific said.

Knific said she is spending more than $200 a week on gas and formula. She used to pay $50 a week if that. “Some weeks, there is no money,” Knific said. “I have a quarter tank of gas, and we still have the stuff to do this weekend. I don’t get paid until Monday.”

Knific said there is no extra spending like more toys for her kids to make ends meet. “It upsets you, especially when you want to go to the store and look for formula and your kid is screaming that they want something to drink or a toy,” Knific said. “Not this time, bud.”

The single mom is hoping for relief and fast. “You watch your gas go down as your circling and circling,” Knific said. “You watch that money drain, right down the drain.”

Knific said when she can’t find the right formula, she has had to use milk as a last resort even though her baby is lactose-intolerant.

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