Regulators have proposed sweeping changes for the baby formula industry, saying high prices and branding are leading to “poor outcomes” for parents.
In its final report on surging prices in recent years, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said parents could be saving £300 annually by switching to lower-priced brands that offered the same nutritional benefits.
Regulators found many brands cost more than the weekly value of people’s benefits, leading some parents to forgo food to buy formula.
The CMA said the NHS could have its own non-brand baby formula, in a bid to help drive prices down.
But the watchdog stopped short of recommending a price cap, which it had said it was looking into last year.
The report was released nearly two years after Sky News revealed how a black market for baby formula had evolved as desperate families struggled to feed their children.
Parents openly described having no choice but to steal products, no longer able to afford formula as prices soared above inflation.
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Desperate parents are stealing baby formula
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From May 2023: Parents stealing formula
The CMA has previously reported a 25% increase in prices over the past two years, with just three companies – Nestle, Kendamil and Danone – controlling 90% of the market.
The watchdog had determined that the lack of manufacturers meant there was no incentive to compete on prices, which meant additional factory costs had been passed on “quickly” and in full to shoppers.
The CMA, which has no powers to bolster competition by increasing the number of formula producers, said its four main recommendations were aimed at delivering better outcomes for parents on both choice and price.
It said formula provided in hospitals should come in plain packaging to reduce brand influence while parents are in a “vulnerable” setting.
Formula sold in shops should display nutritional information and not carry any claims that cannot easily be checked by parents, it said.
It also recommended extending the ban on advertising to include follow-on formula, and allowing parents to use vouchers and loyalty points to buy infant formula.
Moment of vindication for struggling families
This is a moment of vindication for every parent who has struggled to afford baby formula.
It’s the same for every charity that has picked up the pieces of a family in crisis because they can’t safely feed their baby. Their long-held suspicions that parents were getting a poor deal from the baby formula market were right.
The CMA has scrutinised the industry and recommended the biggest shake-up in decades. The changes they propose are far-reaching and could help end the stigma and shame that many families feel because of the difficulties of feeding their babies.
Better information, clearer labelling and greater efforts to empower parents are all long overdue.
Nobody should have to feel like their only option is to steal baby milk but that is exactly what Sky News found when our investigation started two years ago. It was described to us then as a “national scandal” that was putting the health and development of babies at risk.
Baby banks still report a never-ending demand from families needing help even though prices have started to come down and new budget formula milk brands are entering the market.
The measures recommended to ministers today represent a huge opportunity for change – it is down to governments and the industry itself to make it happen.
Sarah Cardell, chief executive of the CMA, said many parents “pick a brand at a vulnerable moment, based on incomplete information, often believing that higher prices must mean better quality”.
“This is despite NHS advice stating that all brands will meet your baby’s nutritional needs, regardless of brand or price.”
Public health minister Ashley Dalton responded: “I welcome this report and would like to thank the Competition and Markets Authority for their thorough investigation.
“There are many benefits of breastfeeding but for those families that cannot or choose not to breastfeed, it is vital that they can access formula that is affordable and high quality. Families should not be paying over the odds to feed their babies because of outdated regulation.
“As part of our Plan for Change, we’re determined to ensure every child has the best start to life. We will carefully consider these recommendations and respond fully in due course.”