How a global fluoride shortage is affecting Maine’s water systems

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 14, 2026

Global supply chain disruptions have forced several Maine water districts, including the state’s largest public water supply, to temporarily stop adding cavity-fighting fluoride to local drinking water. In Lewiston and Auburn, storage tanks that usually hold thousands of gallons of their fluoride mixture liquid sit empty. But they aren’t the only ones to fall victim to the shortage — Portland and Waterville-area systemstemporarily halted fluoridation last month. Although both have since resumed normal operations, Portland Water District was forced to stop fluoridation for two weeks and Kennebec Water District for 24 days while waiting for their next shipment of the mineral to arrive.