Food banks - formula milk

[daffodil10]

is it ok that food banks don't supply mums in need with formula because they are following unicefs baby friendly initiative? Mums are watering down formula to make it last, surely this is crazy and taking breast is best to far when kids are hungry

The food bank I volunteer at have formula available. Some women are unable to breastfeed or have been through trauma and have decided not to. We would never judge someone's feeding choices and ensure that every woman who visits us can feed her baby regardless.

This was done to death yesterday

Yes of course the guidelines are important

Women can ask health visitors for milk tokens for formula.

Find the very long thread from yesterday where this was covered in depth.

I don't agree either, I bought some to donate last year and gave it away via Facebook when I found out our local one wouldn't accept it.

I think formula is covered under the healthy start voucher scheme but obviously some will slip through the cracks.

This is the thread from the other day.

Are you sure? Have you checked?

My understanding is that foodbanks and HV work together to continue to supply babies in need with their current brand of formula. In some areas the hv give vouchers. In others the food banks order in the brands as needed, rather than have in their shelves lots of different types but not the type the baby is used to. Much more mundane and practical reasons that they don't want formula donating.

Where did you find out it was due to unicef?

Food banks do have limited stocks but you need to have a HV referral to access them - otherwise people would buy them to export. The bank I volunteered at until very recently had a entire crate of formula stolen last year by a volunteer who then made a killing selling it on Ebay. By the time he could be prosecuted both the money and goods were gone.

It was covered a lot in that other thread. I may have become a tad more annoyed than I should.

But yes, UNICEF guidelines guide many food banks. Financial restraints too. Lack of expertise... and good links with local services make it more appropriate to signpost elsewhere.

It is NOTHING to do with judging women however they choose to feed their babies!

Even the article that started this shows the woman being signposted by someone to a child charity whose remit DOES include formula. Quite possibly, as would happen in most food banks I know, someone working in the food bank gave her directions!

Please don't take this at face value. There is so much more to it than "food banks leave babies to starve"

It’s a bit more nuanced than that, OP. Many good banks are providing formula. Others have a policy of referring people to a health visitor instead, as they can supply formula milk along with advice on sterilising bottles and FFing safely. It’s not simply a case of foodbanks following Unicef guidance blindly and leaving babies hungry.

I do accept that some families are slipping through the gaps and that needs to be addressed. But over simplifying things and getting outraged about the wrong problem won’t help.

The food bank I volunteer at gives out formula, they go as far as if they know what type make sure the correct brand is in.

There are many reasons why women don't breast feed, I didn't as I am on medication which prohibites it, and formula is so expensive I wouldn't be happy if we didn't provide it.

Of course food banks should be able to provide formula. Women should not be forced to go somewhere else to feed their babies, that is immediate judgement. As a woman who experienced birth trauma and long stays in HDU and baby in NICU I was horrified at the pressure put on vulnerable women to breast feed. Bullying on this issue is rife, quite frankly it’s sickening. All done under the pretext of, we just want to do what’s best for the baby, immediately implying the mum doesn’t.

What is best for the baby is access to food, without judgement of the mum,explicit or implied. Most of the time breast feeding is down to luck, not just trying hard, not just getting that bit of help, not just fighting your way through a bit of discomfort.

I wish the breastfeeding brigade would feed their own babies and leave others to feed theirs. If you want to talk breastfeeding at me, I’m happy to talk maternal mental health and bullying back at you.

Sadly that is the reaction of many. Despite the reasons for not holding formula bus stock have nothing to do with any ideology about feeding babies.

It's purely operational.

You have 2? people posting here, and more in the other thread, who work for a variety of food banks, some do and some don't stick formula.

The reasons for those who do not are given, the facts about organisational connections, the reality of how a charity with a clearly stated remit actually works.

But no. Poster after poster falls for a well crafted headline and choose to blame food banks for not being everything to everyone. What else should we do? Clothing? Alcohol. Fresh fruit, veg, meat?

Since when does venting against a charity that should not need to exist in the first place become your first thought?

Blame consecutive governments, us - society as a whole. But maybe not the people who have got up, gone out and done something to alleviate the real life issue!

It's not that simple. And it was actually stated in the article that many food banks work in conjunction with hv or other charities that can provide formula. For many food banks it is purely operational. So many different types of formula and they can not stock every one as a lot of it could end up wasted. Obv some people are still falling through the cracks but it has nothing to do with "the breastfeeding brigade".

If you can't even afford to feed the baby then you should be breastfeeding. Very few women can't.

It,s been done but i will bite, Healthy start vouchers, talk to your HV, mW.

OP, you really need to do some more research and apply some critical thinking before regurgitating tabloid tripe into AIBU.

You only end up looking silly when someone explains what is actually going on.

If you’re going to try and start this age old debate at least come with a bit of peer reviewed literature rather than a sensationalist piece of journalism, a poorly researched sensationalist piece at that.

Thread from the other day had lots of good points.

I was initially aghast at this but on reading around it, essentially the point is that food banks rely on donations, they can’t guarantee that they can provide an ongoing supply of formula milk. It would be far safer for babies if other sources of support were well established for families, for example vouchers via Health Visitor.

Some food banks do give out formula though. But I understand why some don’t and it’s got nothing to do with judgement on formula feeding.

@Marmitecrackers

If you can't even afford to feed the baby then you should be breastfeeding. Very few women can't.

Not much help if you've just lost your job and were already formula feeding