There is no denying that parenting can be extremely tough. In fact, one of the toughest parts of having a newborn is helping them to adjust to any sort of feeding schedule – regardless of whether they are being breast or formula-fed.
This matter is made worse if the particular baby formula brand that you use is in short supply or you cannot find a type of formula that best suits your little one.
Unfortunately, this may require you to purchase from multiple formula brands to find the one that reduces their discomfort, leading to a whole new issue: a pantry stocked with types of formula you cannot use.
If you have tried a type of formula and your baby didn’t get on with it, or you received formula as a gift and no longer need it, chances are you may end up with (or have) excess unopened baby formula lying around your home.
If this is the case, you may be wondering what to do with it to prevent it from going to waste. Fortunately, this is where this article comes in handy!
There are several convenient ways to use unused (and even unexpired) baby formula. Here are 5 of the most effective ways to do so.
- Re-Sell or Trade Your Excess Formula
This might sound a little too simple, but one of the most practical and effective ways to use unused baby formula is to sell it to someone else.
Your first call may be to contact family and friends in need of an unexpired formula to see if they’d like to buy it from you. If you’re able to, you can even see if another local mom is willing to trade formula with you.
If that doesn’t work out, you can switch your focus to selling it via legal means.
It’s important to know that you cannot trade or sell baby formula if it was acquired through any sort of government assistance program like WIC. These regulations are pretty strict which means finding a website that permits formula sales can be tough.
Don’t panic, though, as there are websites out there that are dedicated to this purpose. A great website that offers this type of service, and one that you may want to consider using to get rid of your excess formula, is Sell Formula.
By visiting https://sellformula.com/ you can find out how much your formula is worth, send it off, and then get cashback for the excess formula that you do not use.
Not only is it convenient but this will be a great financial help if you require some immediate cash.
- Mix Formula With Food
If you have copious amounts of unused baby formula that your little one tolerates but does not like the flavor of, or they simply refuse to drink any milk after starting to eat solids, there are a few ways of still incorporating milk into their diet.
What is it, we hear you ask? Mixing it in with their baby food!
This requires you to add some made-up formula into the things that they eat. For example, this may include adding it to their cereal and milk, yogurt, or other unheated baby food.
There are probably many recipes you want to try that call for the use of cow’s milk. However, this is not recommended for infants under one year, and most recipes featuring cow’s milk can be substituted for breast milk.
Along similar lines, you can also use baby formula as a safe and healthy substitute in a meal or a puree. This includes anything from pancakes to smoothies and popsicles.
Make sure that you follow basic food safety principles to ensure that all leftovers from your cooking or baking are safe to consume at a later date. This entails using the freshly prepared formula in your baking.
- Donate the Formula
You can also donate your unused excess formula. The best place to start is to search for moms in direct need of some help and then donate your formula. Start by advertising it on social media websites like Facebook as there’s always someone in need.
Provided your baby formula is unexpired and unopened, you can donate it to local organizations that focus on assisting children and women.
You may also want to consider providing formula to those who have just experienced a natural disaster such as a hurricane or earthquake and lost all of their belongings.
Feel free to donate it to an animal shelter (yes, that includes expired formula). Before you do, give them a call to ensure that it can be put to good use before you donate. Staff can then work out whether it’ll be acceptable to give to the animals.
These types of animal shelters run off donations and would be grateful to accept any spare formula that you may have.
- Return It to the Store
You might also want to consider returning any unused baby formula to the store where you purchased it.
This suggestion is a little more practical than others on this list but is something you should consider if you want to prevent any formula from being wasted and if you also want to get your money back.
However, there are a couple of factors that go into successfully returning any type of formula to a store.
Notably, you will only be able to carry out the return if your formula is unopened. If you’ve tampered with the seal on your formula, it cannot be returned. This is when donating may become an option.
If you’re planning a return, you must also ensure you’re taking the unopened formula back to the store within their stated return period alongside a receipt as proof of purchase. Plus, your store must be happy to accept the return.
If they do not provide financial reimbursement for your returned purchase, you’ll likely be offered an exchange on products up to the same financial value or even store credit.
- Use It As Plant Food or Fertilizer
Using milk as a type of fertilizer has been a long-standing remedy in the garden for many generations. It’s considered as some type of pseudo-fertilizer that is completely organic and safe for all types of plants (depending on the formula brand, of course).
It’s a well-known fact that solid baby food is rich in nutrients to give your little one the best and healthiest start to their life. Baby formula is no exception.
So, if you’re someone with a whole load of excess unused formula that cannot be donated or returned, you may be interested to learn that expired formula will double as an excellent source of plant food!
This is because different types of baby formula contain all the essential nutrients that plants need to grow properly. Because of this, you may want to seriously consider using it as a fertilizer for your plants!
Again, doing this also limits the amount of wasted formula that you have. It’s a win-win situation!
Summary
That concludes this article about great ways to use unused baby formula. Remember: there is no need to throw away any excess formula.
You can sell it, donate it to someone in need, use it in meals to help wean your baby off milk and onto solid foods, or use it as a fertilizer (if the formula is expired, of course).
However, if it’s been forgotten about for a significant amount of time or has been left open for ages, the unused formula may need to be thrown away.