Nestlé using deadly labels in South Asia
Another shocking example of Nestlé’s disastrous and negligent marketing practices has surfaced in Laos. Dr. Leila Srour, one of INFACT Canada’s colleagues in the region, has reported visiting a village in the Southeast Asian country and finding a mother there gravely ill. In an email to INFACT, Dr. Srour related:
"Sadly, she died of unknown cause, perhaps tuberculosis. The couple have eight children, including a 5 month old...(Relatives) were giving a supplement by bottle. They brought me...a can, embossed with Nestle...The community development person assured me that these cans have "the picture", so they knew that this milk is for babies."
Tragically however, despite being marked with "the picture," the logo of a Nestlé cartoon bear, the bottle that relatives were feeding the infant did not contain infant formula, but rather a substance called "Sweetened Beverage Creamer." This creamer is intended to be used to flavour coffee, and is wholly nutritionally inadequate for an infant. Incredibly, Nestlé is marketing the product to a population with a high incidence of illiteracy using a logo that seems to imply the product is baby food.
The label on the beverage creamer shows a mother bear cradling a baby bear, which clearly would lead many parents to assume that the product was made to feed to infants, especially after seeing similar cartoons on Nestlé formula packages. The label bears a message
asserting that "Sweetened Beverage Creamer is not to be used as a breast milk substitute," but as 39 per cent of Laotian women are unable to read, this is hardly an adequate measure to prevent misuse. Furthermore, the warning is written in Lao, English, and Thai, but many people in rural Laos do not speak any of these languages.
Feeding babies on this innutritious product for any period of time could cause grave and irreversible health problems, including brain damage and death. The Bear Brand label also appears on other products that could easily be mistaken for breastmilk substitutes, such as condensed and evaporated milk. By using these labels, Nestlé has exhibited a reckless disregard for infant health, and the consequences will likely be severe. Infants could easily die as a result, if some already haven’t. Dr. Srour reported:
"The Bear Brand Sweetened Beverage Creamer travels to the most distant parts of Laos, even remote mountain villages... The Bear Brand coffee creamer is now a very well recognized (breastmilk) substitute used by many parents...In the capital city, infants with severe malnutrition have been identified, who have been fed this product as a substitute so their mothers could return to work."
Either Nestlé’s actions are a result of what can only be called criminal incompetence, or it is insidiously trying to sell its creamer to mothers who are unable to afford expensive formula. Please write to Nestlé and urge them to put an end to this deadly scenario. Write your own letter or personalize INFACT’s letter.
