bottle feeding bias

[amymact]

am i the only one who is fed up with being punished for not being able to breast feed. formula costs a fortune and they wont put it on offer and have just increase the price significantly and all to encourage breastfeeding which is great but what about the people who cant breast feed like myself why am i being punished gggrrrr

Why would the formula milk companies put their prices up to encourage women to breastfeed?

Could it be that making baby milk is a very complicated and expensive process?

Sorry you have had a bad experience with bf....but you are getting cross in the wrong direction :)

High prices are a commercial decision taken by the formula manufacturers.

If there was a low price formula that met the quality standards obligatory in the UK and all other countries of the world, then it would be permitted to be sold. The price would have to be low all the time ( no special offers which then ended). That would be a good thing, IMO.

I often wonder how much cheaper formula could be if marketing was reduced.

I think it's economics, supply and demand.

If I had a product that 90% of babies would have for 1st 6 months then the price would dictate this demand.

I think no special offers is good, imagine formula on offer for 2 weeks, then offer stops and people struggle to feed their child.

I also agree with A1ison, i'm sure formula making is expensive.

Formula companies are in it to make money!!!

Didn't a formula company do this a few years ago and get really bad press for it?

I'm not sure if it's true but I remember hearing a story when I was at school (so more like 10 years ago) about a formula company that distributed formula in a poorer (than here) country at a significantly reduced price. The promotion was on for long enough for the mothers who used it milk to dry up, then the price went up and left a lot of women not being able to feed their babies. I was about 14 when I heard this so wasn't into fact checking so I'm not sure if it is true or not but even if it isn't it does illustrate a really good reason why having baby milk on special offer might be a bad idea.

The boycott is still on

Yes Nestle, they have done some truely despicable things in the name of profit and yes there is an ongoing international Boycot because of this.
1st stage Formula can not leagally be on special offer in the UK, it also can not be advertised to the general public and they legally must include a statement about Breast feeding being healthier for your baby both in ads and on the tin.for all formula stages. This is law for a reason and its not so much to encourage breastfeeding as to protect mothers and babies from the underhand practices of Formula companies. If you Google WHO milk code and Baby milk action you'll get a ton of information on all of this and why it is important.
And yes the price is set by the manurfacturor and I seriously doubt they have any interest in promting or encouraging breastfeeding at all.