There are plenty of solutions for feeding U.S. babies
From new legislation to following the European approach to formula
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Some good news as we inch toward 2023: Congress has passed new laws that will protect working and breastfeeding parents.
The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act requires employers to provide pregnant workers with accommodations, like extra bathroom breaks, or a stool to sit on while working a cash register, or not being required to lift heavy objects.
(The fact that we need to codify these things as law, instead of just having a basic standard of decency is a depressing testament to the abuses of capitalism. Still, we have to note progress when it happens).
The PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act guarantees workers the right to a break that will give them time to pump breast milk.
The new laws could make a big difference to parents trying to hold down jobs. “One in five mothers is afraid to tell their employer about their pregnancy,” Kim Elsesser wrote in Forbes. “And nearly one in four mothers (23%) have considered leaving their jobs due to a lack of reasonable pregnancy accommodations or fear of discrimination,” according to a February 2022 survey.
Some parents will get a some relief as a result of this legislation. But others are still facing another crisis in raising kids: the ongoing infant formula shortage. It’s a crisis that hasn’t abated, even while press coverage has.
Sahan Journal, a local news site covering Minnesota, reported on parents' efforts to find adequate baby formula via local Facebook groups. Formula Finder–Minnesota was started by two parents who were on parental leave when the shortage hit. They used their expertise finding Pokemon cards via Facebook groups to source formula at local stores – and share that information with other families.
It’s a nice mutual aid solution, but one that should be completely unnecessary: feeding your children shouldn’t rely on the kindness (and tech skills, and free time) of strangers.
There are better solutions to the formula crisis. As Lane reports in this in-depth piece on the uniquely American origins of the formula crises, one critical solution is diversification.
The formula shortage in the U.S. is the result of a monopoly: only four companies in the U.S. make all the domestic formula on the market. That’s a serious problem in a country where 75 percent of babies are fed formula before they are six months old, including 80 percent of Black households and 77 percent of Hispanic households, according to Sahan Journal.
“Monopolies matter a little less if we are talking about soda,” Amanda Starbuck, a research director at the Food & Water Watch group, a food safety NGO, told Lane. “But it matters a lot more when we’re talking about essential food for infants.”
There’s a better way: European countries, and Germany in particular, have a very diverse formula industry with lots of players and competition, which keeps their supply protected and keeps quality high.
“The care that Europeans take with their baby food supply is mind-boggling by American standards and says a lot about how each country treats the importance of infants,” Lane wrote.
“German formula, for example, is made with “Demeter” milk: Demeter farms produce at least half of the fodder they require for their animals themselves. This means high quality biodynamically grown feed or fresh pasture.”
“If we wanted to end child hunger and feed our children well in America, we could,” said says Amy Bentley, professor of Food Science at NYU. She sounded a bit optimistic that the possibility is dangling within reach.