Georgia,
Thankyou very much for your post and thankyou for taking the time to write.
This is the sort of information I personally have been waiting to hear for a
long time and I am sure that many others are also glad that you posted.

> The Mother's Milk Bank of Ohio's  "silence" on the issue of donor milk
> research has not been intentional, as I have been busy providing donor
milk

That is heartening. I am very glad that HMBANA has discussed this. Have
there been guidelines put together? Are you able to share? I am ignorant of
the law on this matter but is it possible to control the use of milk once it
has passed onto someone else?? Is it possible for some sort of a contractual
arrangement to prevent the misuse of milk?

>I have no intention of being involved in research that
> leads to the engineering and/or patenting of breastmilk components.  These
> research concerns were addressed at the last HMBANA meeting, at which
> representatives of the existing milk banks discussed the importance of
> discerning which research efforts can and cannot be supported given our
goal
> of supporting breastfeeding families and promoting human milk.  We are
very
> committed to avoiding any involvement which would undermine breastfeeding
or
> the use of donor milk. Very little milk is used for research and never
prior
> to meeting the needs of identified recipients.

I can see how milk banks providing human milk within the health care system
can have an enormous impact in increasing the valuing of
breastfeeding....the ripple spreads across the pond.

  This must be
> accomplished in an atmosphere of general reluctance among healthcare
> professionals
> to accept that there are risks associated with not providing
> mom's own milk.

I agree with you. That is why this conversation is so important. There needs
to be understanding in order for it to be possible for cooperation.

>I cannot emphasize enough the value of our working together.

Please understand that when I asked my questions I was in no way suggesting
that those who are involved in milk banks had nefarious purposes in mind for
any of the milk collected or had any intention other than assisting mothers
and babies. However, that researchers who patent or genetically engineer
human milk components have apparently obtained milk from milk banks is a
serious issue and I don't feel that it is unreasonable to ask those involved
with milk banks to be involved in the discussion of this issue and to state
their practice in relation to this. Individual breastfeeding advocates and
mothers may have sufficiently strong views about the commodification of
human milk components to determine that they will not support milk banking
(or individual milk banks) until such time that they can be confident that
milk banks are not participants (unwittingly as this may have begun) in this
commodification. Again, this does not reflect on the character or intentions
of those involved in milk banks. It is just not enough for some of us for
people to say "we are the good guys, trust us," there is evidence that there
has been a problem. Some need to understand that the problem has been
addressed and will not recur, need to understand how this will be prevented.

> I welcome your monitoring...please know that I would never knowingly
> participate in any situation that would undermine breastfeeding.  I know
> that the other members of the Human Milk Bank Association of North America
> hold the same view.

Thankyou again for your email.

Karleen Gribble
Australia

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