A woman holding a baby stands in front of a shelf displaying milk powder products at a supermarket in Beijing May 20, 2013. China's domestic milk powder firms are showing signs of a comeback, boosting their international credentials to escape the long shadow of a deadly melamine scandal in 2008, creating a potential challenge to the multinationals who currently dominate the booming sector. Picture taken May 20, 2013. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

HONG KONG, Feb 23 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Infant-milk formula makers use aggressive marketing that could discourage breastfeeding, despite a World Health Organization code recommending members carefully regulate promotion, according to a new WHO report. China, the world’s largest market, is worst hit, with 97% of mothers targeted.

The findings don’t name names, nor do they have much legal teeth. Just 25 countries have fully implemented the code as law. But Beijing, which does not enforce the WHO guidance, has been cracking down on irresponsible advertisers in areas like healthcare. Official efforts to boost birth rates make mothers’ and babies’ welfare an even more urgent priority for policymakers.

Local dairy giants China Feihe (6186.HK), China Mengniu Dairy and Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial will have the most to lose. Marketing is critical to their strategy: $12 billion Feihe’s campaigns, for example, included hosting 400,000 seminars for mothers and mothers-to-be in the first-half of 2021 alone. That helped its Firmus brand become the country’s bestseller last year, according to Euromonitor, as the company grew market share to 22%, from 7% in 2017. Those tactics could start souring fast. (By Katrina Hamlin)

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Source: Reuters

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