With brief, occasional, italicized and sometimes gratuitous commentary…
• USA Today reports that "less than two months after a baby formula recall, retailers are reporting shortages with some stores rationing sales.
"Nearly 30% of popular baby formula brands may be sold out at retailers across the U.S., according to an analysis by Datasembly, which assessed supplies at more than 11,000 stores.
"That's a higher level than other products, said Ben Reich, CEO of the Tysons, Virginia-based research firm. "
• Bloomberg reports that "highly pathogenic avian influenza has been found in a non-commercial backyard poultry flock in Colorado, the USDA confirmed in a statement on Saturday, amid the worst U.S. outbreak of the virus in seven years.
"State officials quarantined the premises in Pitkin County, and birds from the flock will be 'depopulated to prevent the spread of the disease.'
According to the story, "The deadly virus has been hitting poultry operations along the East Coast and Midwest, including top producer Iowa, where a farm was recently forced to cull nearly a million birds. More than 2 million turkeys have been lost so far in the U.S. since the outbreak began in mid-January, according to Steiner Consulting Group, or about half what is typically slaughtered in a week."
The outbreak is said to be the worst since 2015, has "affected over 24 million wild, commercial and backyard birds nationwide," and is resulting in additional inflationary pressures on the economy.
Which is leaving a fowl taste in the mouths of economists.
