Dear 'Lactnetters',
For your interest I am posting below the latest IBFAN press release on our
new report showing that the artificial baby companies continue to flout the
WHO Code and WHA Resolutions.
For more information contacts are given at the bottom of the press release.
Best wishes
Tessa Martyn
Health Campaigns Co-ordinator
Baby Milk Action / IBFAN
PRESS RELEASE
Artificial baby milk companies continue
³ Breaking the Rules & Stretching the Rules²
EMBARGO: 15 May 2001
GENEVA: Multinational baby food companies Nestlé, Milupa, Abbott-Ross,
Mead-Johnson and Wyeth are the worst violators of the International Code of
Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes, says the International Baby Food Action
Network (IBFAN).
Releasing the Breaking the Rules 2001 report to coincide with the 20th
anniversary of the Code, IBFAN says it has evidence of world-wide systematic
violations of the provisions of the International Code, which prohibits all
direct and indirect promotion of baby foods. The World Health Assembly will
be discussing progress on the Code this week.
IBFAN says that it has proof of infractions by 16 baby food companies:
Abbott-Ross, Danone, Dumex, Friesland, Gerber, Hipp, Heinz, Humana, Mead
Johnson, Meiji, Milupa, Morinaga, Nestlé, Nutricia, Snow Brand and Wyeth.
Among the bottles and teats companies, the worst violators were Chicco,
Gerber, Evenflo and Playtex.
The report is based on a survey of company compliance with the International
Code that was conducted by IBFAN groups in 14 countries in the United
States, Canada, Russia, Malaysia, Ghana, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Italy, Cote
d¹Ivoire, Bolivia, Uruguay, Mexico, Togo and the United Arab Emirates. IBFAN
monitoring of the marketing practices of baby food companies has been a
regular practice of the network.
IBFAN also monitors Code implementation by governments. To date, 51
countries have incorporated all or most of the Code¹s provisions into law,
according to the ³State of the Code by Country 2001², a chart IBFAN is
releasing today as well.
The Code encourages non-governmental organisations to keep a check on the
marketing practices of companies. ³Without IBFAN¹s regular monitoring
exercises and reporting, the situation would be far worse², says Annelies
Allain, Director of IBFAN¹s Code Documentation Centre. ³Most violations were
found in countries where, until now, there were no IBFAN groups, such as
Taiwan, Hong Kong and the UAE. It was a `free-for-all` situation there. No
laws and no monitoring.²
Subsequent WHA Resolutions on infant feeding and young child nutrition have
strengthened the Code and adapted it to new marketing strategies and
scientific knowledge. Among other things, these resolutions prohibit
donations of breastmilk substitutes to any part of the health care system
and recommend complementary feeding from the age of six months. Another
resolution clearly states that financial support for professionals should
not create conflicts of interest.
In March this year, international health experts settled the long debate
about the optimal duration of breastfeeding by recommending that babies
receive only breastmilk for the first six months. The recommendation is to
be incorporated into a draft WHA Resolution which will be presented this
week. The draft Resolution took thirteen long hours of negotiation during
WHO¹s Executive Board meeting in January to reach its present compromise
status. It is likely that the majority of Member States will resent any
move to re-open debate on this draft Resolution whilst a few may try to
introduce amendments weakening it. A lively debate is expected for
Thursday, 17 May.
According to the IBFAN report, all baby food companies disregard many
provisions of the International Code which are meant to ensure optimal
breastfeeding and the highest levels of nutrition among infants and young
children. In their bid to maximise profits, the companies seek to undermine
exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months by promoting many products
for use by 3 or 4 months. Suitable complementary foods should start only
after 6 months, as recommended by the Code and numerous nutrition experts
world-wide. Industry also advertises follow-up milks which discourage
continued breastfeeding and in many cases these promote infant formula by
having very similar labels.
Brazil has recently shown that strong national laws can bring about changes
for the better. Last year, the country introduced a new law which requires
companies to remove pictures of babies, bottles or animal toys from formula
and baby food labels and put clear warnings about the product not to be used
before 6 months. Just last month IBFAN heard that Gerber and Nestlé are the
first to have complied with the new law.
The IBFAN report identifies Nestlé, Gerber, Milupa, Wyeth, Heinz, Mead
Johnson and Abbott-Ross as companies that employ new approaches to get
around marketing curbs. They establish Œbaby clubs¹ to contact mothers
directly in order to distribute promotional materials, free samples and
enticing gifts. Personnel of these and other companies counsel mothers about
infant feeding and recommend the company¹s brands, weakening mothers¹
confidence in breastfeeding and winning loyal customers who will spend a
world-wide average of US$450 per baby per year. Another new avenue to
contact mothers directly and in disregard of any national law is via the
Internet.
One tactic that has witnessed an alarming resurgence is donations of free
supplies of milks, baby foods and feeding bottles to health care facilities.
These supplies promote the use of artificial feeding within the facility or
are passed on as samples to mothers. A majority of mothers, at least 90 per
cent, remain loyal to the brand they are introduced to in the health care
system because of the implied medical endorsement of the product.
The network reminds governments that the Code is a minimum measure to be
translated into enforceable national legislation. It also stresses that WHO
has a clear role as guardian of the Code for the protection of breastfeeding
against vested commercial interests.
- ends -
For more information, contact:
Yeong Joo Kean at IBFAN Penang , Malaysia Tel: +60-4-8905799
Email: [log in to unmask]
Annelies Allain at IBFAN Geneva, Switzerland: Tel: +41-22-7989164
Email: [log in to unmask]
Patti Rundall from Baby Milk Action, UK: tel: 0799 0501337
Mike Brady tel: + 55 12341 9974 email: [log in to unmask]
Notes:
Baby Milk Action is the UK member of the International Baby Food Action
Network. IBFAN is a coalition of more than 150 citizen and consumer groups
in more than 90 countries. IBFAN works for better child health and nutrition
through the promotion of breastfeeding and the elimination of irresponsible
marketing of infant foods, bottles and teats.
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