Paediatricians and heath campaigners have written to the President of the UK Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) to protest about its decision to allow an international conference in Egypt to be sponsored by baby food companies Nestlé,…
Nestlé in trouble for ‘influencing doctors to prescribe baby food’ in India
https://theprint.in/governance/nestle-in-trouble-for-influencing-doctors-to-prescribe-baby-food-in-india/175659/amp/?__twitter_impression=true Nestlé in trouble for ‘influencing doctors to prescribe baby food’ in India Himani Chandna New Delhi: Swiss food giant Nestlé is under the lens for allegedly influencing doctors to recommend its baby products, including infant milk powder, to parents. …
Investigation reveals how cows’ milk protein allergy is extending the reach of infant formula manufacturers
Similar article 10 December 2018 By DR CHRIS VAN TULLEKEN FOR THE DAILY MAIL As the industry is accused of scaring mums off breastfeeding, don’t be fooled by the milk formula machine! BMJ Wednesday 5 December 2018 PDF of the…
Nestle drops scientific meeting on baby food
PDF https://www.telegraphindia.com/health/nestle-drops-scientific-meet-on-baby-food/cid/1675573 Breastfeeding Promotion Network of India sees no science in the session, just industry promotion By G.S. Mudur in New Delhi Published 17.11.18, 2:51 AM Updated 17.11.18, 9:46 AM The global food-maker Nestle cancelled a “scientific session”…
Time to call a halt to Multi-Stakeholder Platforms – including the EU Platform for Action on Diet Physical Activity and Health.
Joint meeting of the High Level Group on Nutrition and Physical Activity and the EU Platform for Action on Diet, Physical Activity and Health on 26 October 2018, in Luxembourg Joint Meeting Agenda Platform Agenda Minutes of the Platform meeting…
More media coverage following President Trump’s tweet.
The media coverage following the New York Times exposé continues with over 600 online editorial articles and about 900 social media posts. Below are just some of the recent articles and programs including one from 2015 that gives an insight…
2018: U.S. Opposition to Breast-Feeding Resolution Stuns World Health Officials
CLICK HERE for linked stories. CLICK HERE for the The New York Times‘ Editorial Board denouncement of the United States’ bullying at the World Health Assembly. U.S. Opposition to Breast-Feeding Resolution Stuns World Health Officials A Brooklyn mother unable to…
40 years ago, the Kennedy Hearings put the baby food industry under the spotlight
US Senate Hearings, Infant formula in Developing countries, 23rd May 1978 This is an important compilation of excerpts of the testaments given at the Senator Edward Kennedy Hearing. The Hearing helped prompt the eventual adoption of the International Code in…
Plastic particles found in bottled water
Plastic particles found in bottled water David Shukman BBC Science editor CLICK HERE http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-43388870 Tests on major brands of bottled water (including Nestlé and Danone) have found that nearly all of them contained tiny particles of plastic. In the largest investigation of…
Nestle CEO (1980 – 1997) Helmut Maucher dies 7th March 2018
Baby Milk Action sends condolences to the family of Helmut Maucher, (Nestlé CEO from 1981 – 1997). However, while he is being praised as a strong and visionary leader, its important we not forget the harm he caused to so many children…
International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) and Conflicts of Interest
Look at who the Niti Aayog is consulting October 26, 2017, 6:31 PM IST Rema Nagarajan in Staying Alive | India | Times of India DISCLAIMER : Views expressed below are the author’s own. International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) is globally known for…
Key Actions You Can Take Today To Support The #BindingTreaty to #StopCorporateAbuse
Key Actions You Can Take Today To Support The #BindingTreaty to #StopCorporateAbuse: http://www.treatymovement.com/get-more-involved/ Acciones para Apoyar el #TratadoVinculante contra #AbusosPorEmpresas: http://www.treatymovement.com/unase-al-movimiento/ Actions pour soutenir le #TraitéContraignant contre #ViolationsParEntreprises: http://www.treatymovement.com/pour-se-mobiliser-encore-plus/
Global Monitoring Reports
Global monitoring Reports on baby food marketing
Some useful new articles about how business works
How Big Business Got Brazil Hooked on Junk Food As growth slows in wealthy countries, Western food companies are aggressively expanding in developing nations, contributing to obesity and health problems. As growth slows in wealthy countries, Western food companies are aggressively…
Fortification: Too Much of a Good Thing?
The rise in fortification interventions since the establishment of the Scaling Up Nutrition and the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) has been dramatic – and has given the ultra-processed food corporations a big boost. BBC World Service broadcast a…
Nestle, Danone, Abbott and Mead Johnson fail to meet RCPCH criteria
On 28th April The Lancet published seven of the many responses to the comment by WHO staff about the new funding policy of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH). The letters are all worth reading. For example, Declan O Brien says…
New Nestlé management asked to change direction on baby milk marketing at shareholder meeting 2017
Baby Milk Action press release 6 April 2017 The Nestlé shareholder meeting on 6 April appointed a new board of directors under the Chairmanship of Paul Bulcke, formerly the Chief Executive Officer. Mark Schneider was appointed as new CEO in January 2017.…
So farewell, Mr Brabeck – change at the top of Nestle
The Nestlé shareholder meeting takes place on 6 April 2017, where a new Board of Directors will be elected. This sees the end of the era of Peter Brabeck-Letmathé, who became Chief Executive Officer in 1997 and continued in the role when…
Global standard-setting committee puts child health before trade
PDF version: ibfan-codex-pr-2016-4 Click here for background documents including official report of the meeting and participants list. Global standard-setting committee puts child health before trade 38th Codex Alimentarius Nutrition Committee, Hamburg, Germany 7th December 2016 Codex Alimentarius, the FAO/WHO body that…
Paediatricians criticise college survey on links with formula milk firms
PDF: bmj.i4555.full Paediatricians criticise college survey on links with formula milk firms BMJ 2016; 354 doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmj.i4555 (Published 17 August 2016) Cite this as: BMJ 2016;354:i4555 Paediatricians campaigning for their royal college to sever its links with infant formula milk…
It is World Breastfeeding Week – what you can do to promote it and stop formula companies hijacking it
It is World Breastfeeding Week, promoted by the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA). In the UK, you can sign a Call to Action to change the conversation around breastfeeding on the UNICEF UK website. Also see the joint statement…
Remembering the baby killer booklet and Nestle libel trial
BBC World Service archive on the the Baby Killer – broadcast 12 July 2016 Nestlé is the target of a boycott over its aggressive marketing of breastmilk substitutes around the world. Monitoring conducted by the International Baby Food Action Network…
Protecting the right to Education against commercialisation
“The Special Rapporteur looks with concern at the rapid increase in the number of private education providers and the resulting commercialization of education, and examines the negative effects of this on the norms and principles underlying the legal framework of…
UN Committee on the Rights of the Child calls on UK government to better support breastfeeding and regulate the formula industry
Baby Milk Action press release 10 June 2016 Update 14 July 2016: Recommendations from the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights added The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has issued its concluding observations on the UK…
Breastfeeding Solidarity March – Gaborone, Botswana, 10 June
An alliance of organisations in Botswana is campaigning to raise public awareness on the importance of breastfeeding in saving lives and supporting development outcomes. They are holding a Breastfeeding Solidarity March in Gaborone on 10 June, starting at 8:30 (announcement…
Mothers need support not pressure – Baby Milk Action presentation to MPs
Click here to share this information using our new format for social media, smartphones and tablets (also works on computers). Baby Milk Action’s presentation to the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Infant Feeding and Inequalities – 17 May 2016…
Launch of joint WHO/UNICEF IBFAN monitoring report
Launch of new WHO/UNICEF/IBFAN Report: Breast-milk Substitutes: National Implementation of the International Code Status Report 2016 Followed by showing of Tigers WHO, UNICEF and IBFAN are hosting an evening of discussion on national implementation of the International Code of…
Commission Report on Young Child Formula
The Commission has published its long awaited report on Young Child Formula. Despite the fact that Member States wanted action, the Commission proposes no effective action, and leaves these products opento the market Nutraingredients: No new legislation needed on ‘growing…
Nestlé and Hershey escape child labour labelling charge
Two class action lawsuits against companies Nestle and Hershey in the United States were dismissed after a federal court ruled there is no duty to disclose the use of child labour in the cocoa supply chain. The suits were brought by…
Paediatricians call on royal college to drop financial ties to infant formula firms
TEXT OF THE MOTION TO BE VOTED ON 27th April 2016: “In order for RCPCH as a professional body to avoid institutional conflicts of interest and thus maintain its reputation as an unbiased, independent educator and advocate for child health,…
IBFAN-GIFA asks Mr Brabeck to change formula marketing practices given its claimed support for breastfeeding to two years and beyond
The following is the text of the intervention Rebecca Norton of IBFAN-GIFA gave at the Nestlé shareholder meeting on 7 April 2016. Click here for the text in French – pdf. This is followed by the response from Nestlé Chairman, Peter…
Baby Milk Action asks Mr Brabeck to change Nestle baby milk marketing – and shareholders to remember the babies who have died
The following is the text of the intervention Mike Brady, Baby Milk Action’s Campaigns and Networking Coordinator, gave at the Nestlé shareholder meeting on 7 April 2016. This is as given and is followed by the response from Nestlé Chairman…
Nestle shareholder meeting asked by Baby Milk Action to remember impact of unethical baby milk marketing on 150th anniversary
Baby Milk Action press release 8 April 2016 The 150th anniversary of the foundation of Nestlé was a major theme of the company’s shareholder meeting on 7 April 2016. Baby Milk Action/IBFAN-UK and IBFAN-GIFA attended to raise concerns about baby…
Nestle is 150 years old – time for it to change
Update: Nestle shareholder meeting asked by Baby Milk Action to remember impact of unethical baby milk marketing on 150th anniversary Nestlé is celebrating its 150th anniversary in 2016. But this should also be a time of remembrance and repentance. Its history is…
Nestle press releasing information on breastfeeding and protein to promote SMA brand – while hiding information from parents on why its formula is on clearance sale
Baby Milk Action press release 7 March 2016 (Members of the public in the UK can click here to support the campaign in Parliament to enforce formula marketing regulations) Issuing the results of a survey is an old trick for…
Those caring people at SMA are just after your money – they have something to sell
A blog by a marketing company called Futureproof employed to recover the SMA brand from its 3rd place position in the UK market has been receiving attention on social media. It reveals the strategies used to present the company to mothers…
SMA brand promotes to half a million ‘We’re mums too’ packs
Thanks to Ethical Sponsorship Ireland for spotting this incredible piece outlining the strategy for getting SMA – owned by Nestlé since December 2012 – back to No 1 spot in the UK. So much more reassuring to think of corporate…
As Nestle boasts of infant formula sales growth, Botswana police file charges over aggressive marketing, while Tesco puts formula with “excessive protein” on clearance sale in breach of UK law
Baby Milk Action press release 18 February 2016 Nestle today launched its latest full-year results, reporting 4.2% organic growth, stating: “Infant formula including growing-up milks, delivered good growth”. This growth comes from systematic violations of baby milk marketing standards adopted…
Botswana Gazette : Police to Charge Nestle for Violations
The following article appears in the Botswana Gazette (17 – 23 February 2016). It comes as Nestle boasted of 4.2% organic growth in launching its financial report on 18 February, claiming: “Infant formula including growing-up milks, delivered good growth.” Botswana…
The Lancet Breastfeeding Series – holding corporations accountable
In part 1 of this article, I reflected on the new Lancet Breastfeeding Series and other significant developments in January concerning our mission to protect breastfeeding and protect babies fed on formula. My focus was on the paper concerning health benefits…
New European Union regulations
Baby food regulations: 6-months recommendation and less sugar Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) voted on 19 January 2016 (393 votes in favour, 305 votes against) to reject draft EU rules on baby food, which would have allowed baby foods…
The problem with the Access to Nutrition Index
2016 Access to Nutrition Index (ATNI) launch for Academics and International NGOs. The Wellcome Foundation, London Friday 15th January 2016 I attended the Gates-Wellcome-CIFF-funded ATNI index that was created by the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) in 2012 and scores major food…
Dietary public health research and the food industry. Towards a consensus?
I attended this conference in Cambridge, on Dietary public health research and the food industry on 11th December organised by the Centre for Diet and Activity Research (AUKCRC Public Health Research Centre of Excellence) Here is an article that followed: Limb_2015_foodLimb_2015_food Meanwhile…
Mike Brady intervention at the UN Business Forum side event on binding Treaty
Today I spoke on a panel at the United Nations Forum on Business and Human Rights in Geneva. Our event was on Challenges and Opportunities of a Treaty Addressing Corporate Abuses of Human Rights. The Treaty is being drafted by a…
Brazilian law is signed at last
3rd November 2015 Very important news from Brazil: After many decades of deliberation and struggle by our IBFAN colleagues in Brazil, a Brazilian law that bans advertising of formulas, pacifiers, bottles and all products that can interfere on breastfeeding – Regulation 11265/2006…
IBFAN comment on Ending Childhood Obesity Report
The Deadline for comments on the Draft Final Report of the Commission on Ending Childhood Obesityis today 13th November 2015. Baby Milk Action and IBFAN have submitted the following comment. BabyBaby Milk ActionIBFAN_ECHO_Nov2015 The Draft Final Report is HERE CLICK…
Nestlé shifts position on breastfeeding, but refuses to change formula marketing practices in Nestlé-Free Week
Baby Milk Action press release 5 November 2015 International Nestlé-Free Week is a time for people who boycott Nestlé over the way it pushes baby milk to do more to promote the boycott – and for those who don’t boycott to…
Nestle launches new hypoallergenic formula promotion campaign as BMJ finally retracts fraudulent research that built the market
Baby Milk Action press release 29 October 2015 Media coverage: Huffington Post 5 November The British Medical Journal (BMJ) announced yesterday that it has finally retracted a fraudulent study used by Nestlé, Mead Johnson and other formula companies to weaken laws…
Health visitors caught up in Nestle v Danone formula marketing war
The Community Practitioners and Health Visitors Association (CPHVA) is a member of the Baby Feeding Law Group (BFLG), which works for the baby feeding industry to be better regulated. It is worrying to see it being targeted by Nestlé and…
German TV investigates Nestle
We are looking forward to English translations of two programmes broadcast in Germany this month by ARD, the world’s largest public broadcaster. Links to the German programmes are given below. Sign up for alerts and we will let you know…