In April of last year, a Swiss nonprofit company released a report alerting the international market about high levels of added sugar in baby food products by a renowned brand. These products were particularly sold in low and middle-income countries, including Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. While Bangladesh and India launched their personal investigations regarding the matter, Pakistan went ahead with business as usual.
However, growing concerns over the sale of substandard and unregistered baby food products and the lack of regulation thereof triggered a petition landing in the Drug Court Lahore. And the court, in a landmark judgement, ordered immediate action to regulate the manufacturing, sale, and quality of baby milk, baby food, infant formula, and similar products.
The court also observed that Pakistan lacks even a single lab equipped to analyse the quality of baby milk, and that there is no mechanism in place with a designated authority liable for monitoring the sale of such products. While this judgment comes after substantial harm has already been done, it is an important step towards protecting the health and well-being of our most vulnerable group.
New parents often seek to fulfil their infants' nutritional needs through baby food products on the directives of medical professionals. However, these parents remain unaware of the potential health risks posed by untested and unregulated products. On the flip side, many people rely on fearmongering to reject all packaged products for babies and children.
Therefore, it is exceedingly important for Pakistan to build up laws, policies, and regulatory mechanisms that ensure edible products meant for infants and toddlers undergo necessary health and safety checks. Such a system would be able to vet products that are safe for use and those that should be avoided.
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