Oh dear - I am starting to feel like the man who watered the worker's
beer....and like a broken record, too! ...*but* here goes:  bf supporters,
lay or professional, come under the definition of 'health worker' in the
WHO code. It is a violation of the code for health workers to donate
samples of branded ABM.  If we wish ABM manufacturers to abide by the code
in the West, then we should abide by it ourselves.

So, the dilemma: you meet a woman who is not bf, and her baby is hungry and
she has no money to buy formula. She may already have given the baby cola,
or worse.

In the UK we have a welfare foods scheme, where a poor mother can get free
formula in exchange for tokens, for the baby's first year. The scheme is
carefully monitored, to avoid its abuse by loan sharks (they take the
tokens in lieu of payment, get the ABM and sell it on to small corner
shops).

Here, a health worker (however defined) could probably give a desperate
mother a small, emergency pack of ABM. She'd then immediately make sure the
mother was signed up to the welfare foods scheme, which keeps her in touch
with a source of support and advice on her baby's health, and ensures she
can *continue* to feed her baby on non-cola stuff.

I would be surprised if this scheme is not replicated in the US and
elsewhere - ie free or discounted formula for those in need. I thought that
was how WIC worked. Put me right if I'm wrong - I am still unconvinced that
the only way to deal with desperate situations is to give away,
unmonitored, supplies of ABM.

Heather Welford Neil
NCT bfc Newcastle upon Tyne