Infant-formula giants accused of risking lives Aggressive marketing of infant formula is blamed for a sharp decline in breastfeeding in developing nations. A report by Save the Children names a clutch of global brands, including Nestle, Danone, Mead Johnson, Abbott, Friso and Enfamil as being involved in dubious marketing practices. When babies receive colostrum - the mother's first milk - within an hour of birth, it kickstarts the child's immune system, making them three times more likely to survive. Babies in developing countries breastfed for six months are up to 15 times less likely to die from diseases like pneumonia and diarrhoea. But the report says a lack of education in poor communities, a shortage of health workers in developing countries and dubious marketing by some baby-milk substitute companies are contributing to declining breastfeeding rates across east Asia and parts of Africa. A long-running campaign has promoted breastfeeding over infant formula, especially in developing countries where a scarcity of clean water can make the use of milk substitutes risky. A global boycott of Nestle - the biggest player in the baby food market - was launched in 1977 to end contentious marketing of infant milk formula, especially to poor women. In 1981 the World Health Organisation introduced the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes, which limits the marketing practices of infant-formula companies, including a ban on gifts to health workers or promoting baby food products in hospitals and clinics. But the Save the Children report concludes that violations of the WHO code continue and "many infant-formula companies conducting marketing and lobbying practices that, we believe, put children at risk." One in five Pakistan health workers surveyed for the report received branded gifts from representatives of breast-milk substitute companies. More than one in 10 of the Pakistani mothers surveyed said they had seen promotional literature about breast-milk substitutes while in hospital or a clinic. In China a quarter of mothers surveyed had received gifts from representatives of baby milk substitute companies and 40 per cent had been given formula samples, often in hospitals. The report also details clear breaches of the WHO code in Laos and Ecuador. The report describes one recently terminated program run by a subsidiary of Danone in Indonesia under which midwives and other health workers were given cash and free flights to Mecca in return for selling infant formula. A 2012 survey cited in the report said one in 10 Pakistan health clinics reported receiving free samples of breast-milk substitutes and "68 per cent said that the sample had been manufactured by Nestle." Nestle Australia said in a statement to Fairfax Media it had the industry's toughest system to enforce WHO code compliance and was disappointed its comments on a draft of the report were "only marginally" taken into account. "We have asked Save the Children for more information on concerns raised in the report, so that we can investigate them," Nestle said. We will take appropriate action if violations are found. The global milk formula market is estimated to be worth $US25 billion a year and strong growth is predicted, especially in Asia. The number of breastfeeding mothers in east Asia and the Pacific fell from 45 per cent to 29 per cent between 2006 and 2012, the report says. "Despite the benefits of breastfeeding being widely known in the developed world, and it being a free, natural way to protect a newborn baby, too little attention is being paid to help mums breastfeed in poorer countries," said Lynne Benson, head of international programs at Save the Children in Australia.