Opinion
Sugar rush alert: Nestle’s infant formula in hot water
Summary
- An investigation by Public Eye and International Baby Food Action Network found that sugar was added in the company’s infant milk-mix meant for less developed markets, but not in the stuff aimed at Europe and the UK. Why so?
Days after the Centre asked e-commerce companies to eject Bournvita and other drinks and beverages from the ‘health drinks’ category on their platforms, Nestle has landed in hot water. After Public Eye, a Swiss investigative organization, and International Baby Food Action Network sent samples of Nestle’s baby food products sold in Asia, Africa and Latin America to a Belgian laboratory for tests, sugar was reportedly found in the infant milk-mix meant for less developed markets, but not in the stuff aimed at Europe and the UK.
In India, every Cerelac baby cereal variant has supplementary sugar, averaging nearly 3gm per portion. The same product had over 5gm per serving in Ethiopia and 6gm in Thailand. In 2022, the World Health Organization advocated the prohibition of supplementary sweeteners in edibles for infants, warning that exposure to sugar early in life could increase health risks.
The old worry is that sweetened milk from packets can wean babies off mothers’ milk. It’s a sensitive issue for milk-formula makers. But for the sake of their own brand images, such companies must come clean on the sugar they use in products used for the nutrition of infants.
