Milupa Aptimil promoting breastfeeding ...

[WigWamBam]

On the Home page there's a link to a site run by Milupa Aptimil claiming to be promoting breastfeeding and offering support lines and so on. If you click on the picture, you're taken to a site purporting to be promoting breastfeeding.

Now, before I get jumped on from a great height, can I say that I have no problem with formula feeding, or with advertising for formula feeding, or with Mumsnet having advertising from a formula company. I'm not interested in yet another breast v bottle feeding barny. But I have to admit to feeling rather odd about a breast-feeding site created by a formula company. Is this cynical marketing, or am I missing something? I wonder what kind of advice someone struggling with breast-feeding would get from their helplines?

It's a bit like a quit smoking line being run by Benson and Hedges, really. You can't help but wonder what their motivation is.

Hmm, I've noticed a lot of their ads in the press recently purporting to be information campaigns and even showing pictures of breastfeeding. I'm too cynical to think that it is anything other than an attempt to push their name.

Not just me being cynical then. It also struck me as quite a sneaky way to get around the ban on promoting formula for babies under six months old, too.

I've actually complained to trading standards about one of their magazine ads. It listed the benefits of breastfeeding on one side, and stuff about Milupa's "research" and "what they've learned from bf" on the other. It is a formula ad in disguise, and very cynical.

Exactly wwb. Glad you've complained CM, should have done so myself. They've been in either the Observer or IoS for weeks now.

I haven't seen the Milupa scheme but our local chemist now has leaflets offering bf support - from SMA. Hmmmm.

Totally cynical marketing. And watch what they say to you on the line too - I've heard of women being told that there's no difference between breastmilk and formula on the Cow & Gate line

Shouldn't be allowed. They're not promoting breastfeeding at all. Was going to say something to MN about the link on the front page, tbh.

I think they really care about women and babies. I bet they'd forego a whole year's profit if they felt they could make a difference to just a handful of women struggling to breastfeed.

Like the good folk at Nestle with their campaigns in the third world, these are truly wise and caring people with our best interests at heart.

Aren't they?

omg!!

I hadn't seen that - I just click on "talk" and never bother scrolling down.

Right, time for an email to MN Towers, I think...

I don't really have a problem with them advertising, but it sticks in my craw somewhat that they try to disguise it as support for breastfeeding. There's no way that a helpline set up by a formula company is ever going to fully promote breastfeeding.

sorry, got a bit over excited in my last post

Have emailed MN Towers to ask them not to collaborate with Milupa in flouting the law though...

It's the sneakiness that gets me. They'll be doing ads without the brand name next, like those Silk Cut ads that just had a piece of purple silk with a cut in it.

OK, so who's going to ring the helpline with a fictional bf problem to check out what they actually advise?

go on Wordgirl, you do it!

I'd laugh if they recommended seeing a bfc rather than topping up...

I'll eat my shirt if they suggest a breast-feeding counsellor rather than topping-up or switching to formula.

Milk companies used to supply information leaflets for breast feeding mums. They all had pictures with miserable looking breast feeding women and used a lot of negative language such as cracked nipples and breast abscesses. Yes that can happen but it made women think of breastfeeding negatively. Go on, someone contact them for advice. I am a hopeless liar or I would do it

I'm a crap liar too - have never been able to play practical jokes on people! Someone must be able to do it.

Glad someone beat me to it. Very disappointed with noble MN for getting involved in this. i know that Justine came on a while ago to discuss the issue theoretically but i thought she came away knowing that most people were saying NO NO NO.

Actually,I feel really fucking pissed off about it. Is noone safe from these bastards??????????

Advertising is one thing but this is quite another. This is advertising whilst pretending not to be advertising, and feigning concern for breast-feeding while they're doing it.

I was pretty shocked to see this on MN too. Looking forward to hearing their response to this thread.

I started a thread on 'Site Stuff',thinking it might be spotted more easily.
Please contribute if you feel as strongly as I do.

This is along the lines of Ronald McDonald promoting veg, fruit and exercise, which has nothing to do with McDonalds!

Assuming you've seen those ads on Nick Jr.

But at least you can still eat fruit and veg and take exercise while you eat McDonalds ... once you've been converted to formula there's no going back to breastfeeding.

True.

Ill phone the helpline. Just need to think of a major problem to get their minds ticking! Not that they will have to think much, will prob just say 'we have recreated the closest thing to breastmilk so why not give that a try?' I just dont know where these companies get off?!
Anything to make some money!