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Help to strengthen the UK law

In 1995 all the leading health professional and mother support groups opposed the UK Infant Formula and Follow-on Formula Regulations for being too weak. Following concerted campaigning by the Baby Feeding Law Group (formed in 1997) the Government has pledged to strengthen the law.

Read the Baby Feeding Law Group report to the consultation - with monitoring evidence showing why the law needs to be strengthened, legal arguments and responses to specific questions in the consultation: Protecting breastfeeding - Protecting babies fed on formula.

For a detailed line-by-line analysis of the proposed regulations click here for a pdf and here for a word document.

Although the consultation has closed, you may still wish to send a message to the Food Standards Agency. Click here for details of the consultation.

 

Send a letter to the Food Standards Agency

Write to: Derek Hampson, Nutrition Division, Food Standards Agency Room 115B, Aviation House, 125 Kingsway, London, WC2B 6NH. (Derek.hampson<AT>foodstandards.gsi.gov.uk) along the following lines:

"I am very pleased that Government intends to strengthen the Infant Formula and Follow-on Formula Regulations and hope that the new law will be fully in line with the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes and subsequent, relevant Resolutions of the World Health Assembly. In particular it should:

  • ban all promotion of breastmilk substitutes (including follow-on formula and bottles and teats)
  • prohibit baby feeding companies from seeking direct or indirect contact with mothers (including a clear ban on company 'carelines', pamphlets, mailshots, emails and promotional websites),
  • prohibit sales incentives for marketing personnel employed by manufacturers of distributors of breastmilk substitutes,
  • prohibit all idealizing text and images from all breastmilk substitutes,
  • prohibit company-produced or sponsored materials on infant feeding (the Government must provide objective information on infant feeding, avoiding conflicts of interest in funding infant feeding programmes),
  • require any permitted claims to be placed at the back of the package near the nutrition panel in specified text,
  • require clear warnings about the fact infant formula is not a sterile product and may contain harmful bacteria, alongside clear instructions on how to reduce risks from possible intrinsic contamination,
  • prohibit the promotion of names associated with breastmilk substitutes (ie brand names and company names),
  • restrict information for health professionals to scientific and factual matters with no idealising text or images,
  • prohibit promotion in health care facilities and gifts to health workers (samples for evaluation only),
  • prohibit the promotion of any product targeting babies under 6 months (complementary foods should not be marketed in ways that undermine breastfeeding).