• IFE Core Group
• IFE Core Group members and mandate
• IFE Activities
  • IFE Orientation Package (2009)
  • Guide for the general public
    • The harsh reality
    • What should happen in emergencies?
    • How does this all look on the ground?
    • Myths that put babies at risk
    • But wouldn't aid agencies and health authorities make sure that babies aren't harmed?
    • What is the scale of the problem?
    • Do YOU want to help infants in emergencies?
    • Your feedback
    • Key contacts
    • Further reading and resources
    • Sample letters
  • World Breastfeeding Week 2009
• Training and meeting plans
• Networking
• Key contacts
• Translations and adaptations
• IFE Resource Library

But wouldn't aid agencies and health authorities make sure that babies aren't harmed?

Unfortunately, emergencies are chaotic by nature and this makes controlling the aid response complex and difficult; a multitude of factors can result in undesirable practice in relation to infant and young child feeding. For example, logisticians, whose job it is to transport goods, may be unaware of the potential for harm and transport unsolicited donations of infant formula or powdered milk to the emergency area where it will be difficult to control distribution. Aid agency staff who respond first to a disaster are likely to be those who happen to work close by, they may be experienced in development work but have no training in emergency response or infant and young child feeding. Because of their inexperience, they may believe that extensive distribution of infant formula is desirable in case some babies need it and they may interpret the large quantities of infant formula arriving in relief aid as confirmation of this belief.

Competing priorities in emergency management contribute to the inappropriate distribution of powdered milk and infant formula and lack of support for breastfeeding. Emergency work is an area in which there is a high turnover of staff and maintaining training for incoming staff members is difficult. The urgent need for aid workers when an emergency occurs can result in the deployment of staff with incomplete training. Inadequately trained staff may unknowingly harm babies by inappropriately distributing infant formula. In addition, relief staff are specialised in different areas of response and those without expertise in infant feeding may unintentionally place babies at risk. For instance, those concerned with adult nutrition may not consider that when they provide powdered milk for adults that there will be a ‘spill-over’ to infants. When considering the competing interests of different areas of aid, the special needs of infants may be overlooked unless protecting babies is mandated as a priority.

Pressure to supply infant formula may exist. Media appeals to supply infant formula can pressure governments to supply it. Alternatively, mothers may directly ask for infant formula believing that stress has dried up their milk and relief workers who are inexperienced in infant nutrition may accept this at face value and so unnecessarily provide infant formula.