Feed & BPAS publish formula provision at food banks briefing
Together with our collaborators at BPAS, we published a briefing on the provision of infant formula at food banks. The key points were:
The cost of infant formula is out of reach for many families, and Healthy Start vouchers are insufficient to afford sufficient formula supplies for families in need.
Families are forced to resort to unsafe methods of feeding their children due to the unaffordability of formula.
Foodbanks commonly reject donations of infant formula, citing UNICEF guidance. This leaves some regions critically underserved.
Guidance recommends that the safest way for women living with HIV +ve status in the UK to feed their babies is with formula. The high cost puts them at risk of resorting to either unsafe infant feeding practises or risking their own nutrition, which may have an impact on the effectiveness of their medication.
Reliance on foodbanks in the UK is at the highest rate on record, lending a particular urgency to this issue.
