‘The second mother’: How the baby food industry captures science, health professions and civil society in France

Abstract

Most babies in France are fed with infant formula and then commercial complementary foods, many of which are ultra-processed and harmful to health. Internationally, there is opposition by the baby food industry to the introduction of public health policies that would limit the marketing and consumption of such products. Our aim was to identify the key baby food industry actors, describe their history and corporate political activity (CPA) in France. We sourced publicly available information, which we triangulated with data from 10 semi-structured interviews. Qualitative thematic analysis was undertaken simultaneously to data collection, guided by an existing classification of the CPA of the food industry. The baby food industry in France has shaped the science on infant and young child nutrition and nurtured long-established relationships with health professionals. This corporate science and these relationships helped baby food companies to portray themselves as experts on child-related topics. The baby food industry has also engaged with a broad range of civil society organisations, particularly through the concept of the first 1000 days of life, and during the covid-19 pandemic. We found evidence, although limited, that the baby food industry directly lobbied the French government. Since its early development in France in the 19th century, the baby food industry used its CPA to promote its products and protect and sustain its market. Our findings can be used to recognise, anticipate and address the CPA of this industry, and to minimise any negative influence it may have on babies' and mother's health.baby food industry, commercial determinants of health, corporate political activity, infants and young children feeding, ultra-processed foods | 1 of 11

Corporate activities that influence population health: A scoping review and qualitative synthesis to develop the HEALTH-CORP typology

“…Corporate involvement in the development and implementation of health policy was a significant focus of many of the included articles and a wide range of corporate strategies were discussed. Corporations were reported to engage in efforts to secure a favourable policy environment, for instance, by contributing to political parties [12,18,20,[31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44]…”

On the Pathogenicity of the Oral Biofilm: A Critical Review from a Biological, Evolutionary, and Nutritional Point of View

“…Within the social rituals, processed foods containing large amounts of sugar were embedded in a variety of recurring habits such as sugared coffee, sugared cakes in the afternoon, and sugary foods on birthdays, Easter, Halloween, and Christmas, as only some examples [ 81 , 82 ]. Within the capitalized system, food industries influence “consumers” through advertisements and political lobbyism to continue a Western type of diet [ 83 , 84 , 85 ]. Even in the field of dental research, the sugar industry influenced the research agenda of the U.S. National Institute of Dental Research (NIDR) to avoid research dealing with sugar reduction strategies [ 86 ].…”

A call to the European Congress on Obesity: It’s time to remove corporate sponsorship

“…Firstly, it is important to recognise these corporate activities for the marketing strategies that they are. Nestlé was a pioneer in medical marketing, 8 and its carefully cultivated relationships with health professionals have previously been shown to advance the industry's interests. This is no secret, as ECO2023 states in the brochure for prospective sponsors: "You can tailor your marketing strategy by purchasing individual sponsorship items to suit your specific needs.…”

“…Further to this, any additional ideas that you may have to promote your products and services are welcome for consideration." 8 Corporations have a legal duty to make a profit from the sales of their products. Marketing is a key vehicle for that.…”

“…We will be happy to work with you to maximise the return on your investment by helping you to pick from the list of individual sponsorship items, to create a successful package for your organisation. Further to this, any additional ideas that you may have to promote your products and services are welcome for consideration.”8…”