Kathleen - thank you SO much - your suggestion to let other Mayors know what is going on is very good. I really appreciate you taking the time to make-up a form letter. People in other countries are also alerting decision makers. I know I have asked a lot of people on Lactnet but if we really care about whether women can successfully breastfeed, we must stop this unethical and aggressive marketing.
I hope everyone on Lactnet will send your letter out. Nestle, (and the other companies) need to know we are not going to let them use us to market their product any longer. (I am doing penance for the time I handed out formula gift packs at discharge - I had no idea that I was undermining women's confidence and filling industry pockets with dollars). Of course, we need formula occasionally, but like insulin, it shouldn't be marketed to everyone.
Renee (in Vancouver) in response to Kathleen Bruce's post below:
Kathleen Bruce RN IBCLC
Lactnet co owner
[log in to unmask]
Williston Vt
www.eatatmomsvt.com
Rene,
Thanks for all you are doing (and Marie too!) Here is a letter template I
sent to my city mayor- I would love if other Lactnetters would send
something similar to at least see if we can't pre-empty Nestle, elsewhere.
I'm afraid it has become clear that Mayor Booker's political aspirations
are stronger than his sense of right and wrong..... and Nestle certainly
knows which political players are open for "business."
Honorable Mayor XXXXXX,
We are writing to tell you about a concern we have regarding
several multi-national infant formula companies, in this case Nestle
Corporation, who have recently begun making overtures to city mayors with
the offer of large amounts of money in exchange for access to the good
offices of those in position of leadership.
Should you be approached in this way, we request that you please not allow
fiscal concerns to cloud your responsibility to protect the health of our
children by insuring that every mother and baby gets the chance to learn
about breastfeeding without the unethical influences of companies like
Nestle.
The infant formula industry can only thrive where women don't
breastfeed. It spends millions of dollars each year in advertising to
undermine breastfeeding, while enjoying no competition from the producers
of human milk.
But this is not enough for Nestle. With a surge of hospitals across the
country becoming "Baby Friendly," which means these hospitals will no
longer distribute infant formulas for free as "gifts" Nestle seems to be
looking for others ways to gain influence and try to disguise it's actions
as ethical and above board.
Recently, Mayor Cory Booker of Newark, New Jersey, perhaps without clearly
thinking through the implications, accepted $100,000.00 from Nestle,
ostensibly to help combat childhood obesity! Since infant formula is
implicated in the childhood obesity epidemic, this is a shocking and sad
situation, one which we suspect the mayor may already have come to regret.
Like you, many of us are working hard to help improve the lives our fellow
citizens, against extremely formidable foes. To allow our efforts to be
co-opted by the formula industry would be extremely unfortunate.
--
Kathleen B. Bruce RN IBCLC, In home Breastfeeding Support,
[log in to unmask]
www.eatatmomsvt.com
http://www.etsy.com/shop/HeritageWoolSamplers
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