IBFAN STATEMENT (draft) Industry inspired ‘Call to Action’ gives companies a 10-year-licence to harm children. 25th June 2020 The International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN)[i] has denounced a new BMS Call to Action that has been issued by 6 non-governmental-organisations (many funded by…
IBFAN and 630 NGOs sound alarm over wave of Covid-19 claims in ‘corporate courts’
630 civil society groups sound alarm over wave of Covid-19 claims in ‘corporate courts’ Groups in more than 90 countries warn ISDS system could be used to claim billions from governments over pandemic protections Countries could be facing a wave…
Webinars: Protecting Breastfeeding in the time of Covid-19
You are welcome to join this Webinar on Protecting Breastfeeding in the Time of COVID-19: Implementation of the Code in Asia on Wednesday June 24 at 2:00PM Bangkok time. To participate please register HERE as soon as possible.
Updated: How companies exploit the COVID-19 crisis
How companies are exploiting the COVID-19 pandemic pretending their marketing is ‘Humanitarian’ and that their products build immunity. Infant formula companies are ‘exploiting’ COVID-19 pandemic Companies are accused of using COVID-19 to push their products, including targeting parents’ ‘fears of…
Launch of WBTi Evaluation 12 June – Tracking National actions makes a difference
“Making A Difference- An Evaluation Report of the World Breastfeeding Trends Initiative (WBTi) in Mobilising National Actions on Breastfeeding and IYCF: 2020”. Date: 12 June 2020, 01:00 PM (GMT) To participate please register HERE Executive Summary Full Report Press Release …
News, articles and action you can take on UK US trade deals
A good piece by Baskut Tuncak, UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Toxics on the risks of a trade deal with the US and weakened pesticide safety standards: https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/brexit-us-trade-talks-trump-food-standards-pesticides-eu-a9556581.html The UK should not let its pesticide standards slip during US…
Updated: Codex Consultations: Follow-on Formulas, Ready to Use Therapeutic Foods (RUTF)
Codex Consultation on Review of Follow-up Formula (CXS156 – 1987) Deadline 10th June 2020. IBFAN-2020-Comment Subject under discussion: Definition, linkages between definition and name of product, and the JEMNU report on nitrogen to protein conversion factor. IBFAN response to…
IBFAN statement for World Food Safety Day, 7th June 2020
IBFAN STATEMENT World Food Safety Day June 7, 2020 Food Safety Everyone’s Business The WHO initiative, its second World Food Safety Day aims to draw attention to the need to prevent foodborne risks, contribute to food security, human health economic…
Shocking gaps in emergency preparedness for Europe’s babies, new report shows
PRESS RELEASE Split, Croatia Thursday, 4th June 2020 Summary report Full report Press Release. Research article The Covid 19 pandemic has shown how important it is for countries to protect their citizens from…
PRESS RELEASE: Launch of the WHO UNICEF IBFAN Global Code Report. Recordings and presentations
WHO has published the recording and presentations of the launch here: Access password: CLICK HERE #Code2020 Download presentations Remarks on behalf of IBFAN Mexico 2020 Code Status Report results and findings Code violations in Indonesia The Practitioner view Moderator: Chris…
Updated: COVID-19 WHO and UNICEF stress the importance of breastfeeding
WHO and UNICEF advice on breastfeeding and coronavirus NEW UNICEF: Response to COVID-19: Guidance Note on Financial Contributions or Contributions in-kind from Food and Beverage companies Version 2 (29th April 2020) Updated Frequently Asked Questions: Breastfeeding and COVID-19. (7th May…
IBFAN alerts the World Health Assembly to baby food exploitation of Covid-19
IBFAN alerts the 73rd World Health Assembly to baby food exploitation of COVID-19 The May 2020 session of the World Health Assembly was a virtual two day meeting focusing on COVID-19 18/19th May. IBFAN’s written statement reaffirmed our support for…
US Objects to ‘Equitable Access’ language in EU-led draft Resolution on Covid-19
WHO Member States Agree On Draft Resolution For COVID-19 Response – Overriding US Objections to ‘Equitable Access’ Elaine Ruth Fletcher, 14 May 2020 World Health Organization member states reached initial agreement today on a European Union-led draft resolution on global…
Covid-19: research and media reports
Research on COVID and breastmilk Evidence of a significant secretory-IgA-dominant SARS-CoV-2 immune response in human milk following recovery from COVID-19 Alisa Fox1, Jessica Marino2, Fatima Amanat3, Florian Krammer3, Jennifer Hahn-Holbrook2, Susan Zolla-Pazner1, and Rebecca L. Powell1* 1Department of Medicine, Division…
Health and nutrition claims for infant formula are poorly substantiated and potentially harmful
Guidance for the Conduct and Reporting of Clinical Trials of Breast Milk Substitutes Another important paper has been published in JAMA using the output from a global Delphi project which aims to protect breastfeeding when clinical trials of BMS are…
Civil Society Org Urges Amitabh Bachchan and Union Health Minister to Stop Promotion of Separation of Covid +ve mothers and their babies
Press Release Civil Society Organisation Urges Amitabh Bachchan and Union Health Minister to Stop Promotion of Separation of Covid +ve mothers and their babies Promoting a “Bottle- feeding” culture is NO good for us 29.April.2020, New Delhi : According to…
WHO May Host Virtual World Health Assembly May 18 – COVID-19 To Be Main Agenda Item
WHO May Host Virtual World Health Assembly May 18 – COVID-19 To Be Main Agenda Item https://www.healthpolicy-watch.org/who-may-host-virtual-world-health-assembly-meeting-may-18-with-covid-19-main-agenda-topic/ For the first time ever, the World Health Assembly appears set to meet in a one-day virtual session on May 18, which…
Call for a novel CERN with patent free collaboration
CERN’s convention: “The Organization shall have no concern with work for military requirements and the results of its experimental and theoretical work shall be published or otherwise made generally available.” The need for global collaboration on science with safeguards against…
NGOs join forces to support WHO following US threats to withdraw funding
SID article IBFAN statement of support to WHO 11th April 2020 The International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN) and partner civil society organisations are joining forces to support the World Health Organisation in the face of attacks on its Director General,…
Trump’s blame game against the WHO: the wrong move in the global endeavour to manage the Covid19 pandemic
ARTICLE by SID Trump’s blame game against the WHO: the wrong move in the global endeavour to manage the Covid19 pandemic It is classical syndrome of hate-mongering governments to nervously seek and blame “others” for responsibilities and failures that…
March 18 2020. Ask your MP to protect breastfeeding, families in crisis and children in working poverty
APOLOGIES FOR CROSS POSTING Ask your MP to protect breastfeeding, families in crisis and children in working poverty The Coronavirus crisis is throwing up enormous problems for so many people and its hard to see where, when or how this…
Ask your MP to protect breastfeeding, families in crisis and children in working poverty
The Coronavirus crisis is throwing up enormous problems for so many people and its hard to see where, when or how this nightmare will end. You can help by contacting your MP to make sure the following safeguards are in…
Baby Feeding Law Group
The Baby Feeding Law Group https://www.bflg-uk.org/ Who we are The Baby Feeding Law Group UK was founded by Baby Milk Action in 1997 and has been working for over 20 years to strengthen UK baby feeding laws in line…
APPG on Infant Feeding & inequalities: US and UK Trade talks
Reminder: today’s All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) meeting on Infant Feeding & Inequalities I will be making a short presentation on ‘US–UK trade talks –the potential impact on food standards Tuesday 10 March, from 1-3pm. Committee Room 18 The agenda…
Breastfeeding and HIV therapy
HIV treatment in pregnancy Babies of South African mothers taking HIV therapy have worse health in early months – unless they are vaccinated and consistently breastfed Gus Cairns 11 February 2020 A South African study has found that, in general, babies…
New compositional, labelling and marketing regulations come into force
On February 22nd 2020 new compositional, labelling and marketing regulations for most infant formula, follow on formula and infant milks marketed as foods for special medical purposes on the UK market came into force. This means that legally, products meeting…
When the SUN casts a shadow – the human rights risks of multi-stakeholder partnerships
Full report: ENGLISH FRENCH SPANISH 4-page brief February 24, 2020 When the SUN casts a shadow New research study sheds light on the human rights risks of the Scaling up Nutrition (SUN) In the past two decades ‘multi-stakeholder’ partnerships have…
Last chance to join Civil Society letter about conflicts of Interest in the UN Food systems
Civil Society letter expressing concern about the World Economic Forum’s partnership with the United Nations This letter has already received 330 signatures. The deadline has been extended to February 28th so if your organization has not yet signed it and…
Protected: When the Sun casts a shadow
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.
Lancet Commission: A Future for the World’s Children says self regulation doesn’t work
A Future for the World’s Children Read the report here See the launch on 19th February here ” Industry self-regulation does not work, and the existing global frameworks are not sufficient. A far stronger and more comprehensive approach to regulation…
Malnutrition to transform business prospects
I wasn’t invited to the invitation only event but I found this sentence especially revealing: “Companies across all sectors hold huge, transformative power to save countless lives and transform their own financial prospects” Feedback from those who were there would…
Nestlé no longer a sponsor of My Family and the Galapagos
The second series of My Family and the Galapagos is airing on C4 on Sunday evenings. Having written to complain about the Nestlé sponsorship and how I felt it had influenced the show’s message about plastic waste, I was…
How ultra-processed food took over your shopping basket
How ultra-processed food took over your shopping basket It’s cheap, attractive and convenient, and we eat it every day – it’s difficult not to. But is ultra-processed food making us ill and driving the global obesity crisis? By Bee Wilson…
Managing Severe Acute Malnutrition/Severe Wasting
Global Action Plan (GAP) on child wasting* During the WHO Executive Board (3-8th January) WHO conducted a very short consultation on this new plan. Baby Milk Action Response NAPi India Response (a national think tank on nutrition) The final Plan proposes…
No ‘sunset clause’ please! NGOs call for vigilance on harmful marketing
Press Release PDF No ‘sunset clause’ please! NGOs call for vigilance on harmful marketing WHO Executive Board meeting, Geneva, 7th February 2020 Civil society NGOs attending WHO’s Executive Board meeting ahead of the May World Health Assembly are protesting against…
WHO Executive Board Meeting: Biennial Reporting on the International Code under threat
WHO Executive Board Meeting, 3 February 2020 – 8 February 2020, WHO Headquarters, Geneva Event website WEBCAST HERE SEE Press release HERE IBFAN made interventions on Maternal, Infant and Young Child Nurition (Agenda Item 18 see Friday pm webcast…
World in Progress: Who decides what’s healthy? Private donors impacting WHO’s health policies
World in Progress: Who decides what’s healthy? Private donors impacting WHO’s health policies The current Corona virus outbreak highlights the importance or international coordination in health, and the World Health Organization plays and important role in that. But as UN…
WHO: Secretariat bypasses FENSA restrictions on private sector secondments
WHO: Secretariat bypasses FENSA restrictions on private sector secondments through “Nil-Remuneration Contracts” TWN Info Service on Health Issues (Jan2020/01) Third World Network Geneva, 29 January 2020(TWN) – The secondment of industry personnel to the World Health Organization (WHO) under “Nil-Remuneration”…
Court condemns Nestlé for violating Swiss Labour Law regarding its food safety manager
PRESS RELEASE Court condemns Nestlé for violating Swiss Labour Law Mrs. Yasmine Motarjemi v. Société des Produits Nestlé SA (formerly Nestec SA) Yasmine Motarjemi, Ph.D., holds an M.Sc. degree in food science and technology from the University of Languedoc, Montpellier,…
Voluntary Guidelines on Food Systems and Nutrition – Draft One
IBFAN is a member of Food and Nutrition working group of the Civil Society Mechanism (CSM) of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS). We regularly contribute to the deliberations of the CSM-CFS through the WG. Presently, the CFS is…
Are the Exclusive Breastfeeding targets holding back further action?
Several countries now exceed the targets for Exclusive Breastfeeding by 2025. Some are interpreting the targets as optimum rather than interim – and this may be holding back further action that could save childrens lives. Interpreting the World Health Assembly…
Hundreds of civil society organizations worldwide denounce World Economic Forum´s takeover of the UN
Press Release Hundreds of civil society organizations worldwide denounce World Economic Forum´s takeover of the UN As corporate executives fly into Davos for the annual meetings of the World Economic Forum, more than 400 civil society organizations and 40 international…
Child-Slavery Appeals by Nestle, Cargill Draw High Court Inquiry
The Supreme Court will consider a number of patent cases for hearing during its Jan. 10 conference. Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg Child-Slavery Appeals by Nestle, Cargill Draw High Court Inquiry Jan. 13, 2020, 2:57 PM Supreme Court seeks Trump administration input on…
Nestlé under fire again
Milk for older babies Nestlé struggles to win over baby formula critics By Jessica Davis Plüss This content was published on January 10, 2020 11:00 AM Jan 10, 2020 Growing-up milk, specially-formulated for older infants, generated the majority of sales growth…
WHO consultation on Governance
WHO information session on NSA consultation and secretariat proposals: IBFAN Questions/Comments 16th December 2019 – Some very worrying changes are bing proposed at this meeting and I am joining this meeting by WEBEX. Thanks to colleagues from the Geneva NGO…
US trade deal must not undermine NHS, food standards or climate action
Update: Cross-party Lords will debate the Withdrawal Agreement Bill on Amendment 27 tomorrow which would give Parliament scrutiny of the UK-EU Future Relationship. Thanks to the Trade Justice Movement, Global Justice now and all the NGOs and MPs who are …
US UK Trade talks
Baby Milk Action is a member of the Trade Justice Movement (TJM) and Global Justice Now (GJN) – and has contributed to a number of position papers about trade justice and future US/UK negotiations. Trade Justice Manifesto 2019. NHS drug…
Call to Action: IBFAN’s 3rd Global Conference in Brazil
RIO DE JANEIRO DECLARATION: A CALL TO ACTION PDF ENGLISH We, citizens of the whole world, call on all governments, professionals, companies and everybody to respect the right of mothers and children to breastfeed. While mothers have the sovereign right over their own…
Exporting countries put trade before the health of the planet and children
Exporting countries put trade before the health of the planet and children 41st Codex Nutrition meeting (CCNFSDU) 23 – 29th November 2019, Dusseldorf, Germany REPORT of the meeting Efforts by developing countries, WHO, UNICEF and the International Baby Food Action…
WHO evaluation of Framework for Engagement with Non State Actors (FENSA)
Evaluation of WHO’s Framework of Engagement with Non-State Actors (FENSA), November 2019. WHO Evaluation Office _____________________________________________ We have been calling on WHO to carry out a thorough, open and transparent evaluation of FENSA ever since this Framework was adopted in…