Abbott Laboratories has confirmed it is under investigation by the Department of Justice in the wake of last year's closure of the company's infant formula manufacturing plant in Michigan.

The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that Abbott's plant in Sturgis, Mich., was under scrutiny nearly a year after the multinational voluntarily closed it following reports that children who consumed formula made there had become sick.

A spokesperson for Abbott later confirmed the company is cooperating with investigators in a statement sent to multiple media outlets, including NBC and CNN.

Abbott shuttered the plant in February 2022. Four infant babies were sickened by Cronobacter sakazakii, a rare bacteria, after consuming baby formula that was produced at the plant. Two of the infants later died.

Investigators discovered numerous violations at the Michigan plant, including leaky roofs and bacterial contamination, but were unable to prove the bacteria that killed and sickened the children came from the plant.

Abbott maintains it has been unable to identify the source of the bacteria.

The facility reopened last June under a consent decree between Abbott and the Food and Drug Administration.

The shutdown of the facility has been widely cited as a contributing factor to an acute, nationwide market shortage of baby formula last year.

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