Baby milk should have plain packaging in hospitals, CMA says

Baby milk formula should have plain packaging in hospitals, the regulator has said following a probe into the market.

Baby milk brands often provide hospitals with formula below cost, because once parents start using a brand, they tend to stick with it.

In addition, parents should be allowed to buy baby milk formula using loyalty points and vouchers, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said.

Restrictions on price promotions and discounts on formula should remain in place so mothers are not discouraged from breastfeeding, it said, as part of a number of recommendations designed to make the market work better.

At present parents are facing “poor outcomes” because of the way the baby milk market works, the CMA said.

Standardised packaging would “eliminate” brand influence after parents leave hospitals.

Parents also feel guilty about using lower-priced brands, because they think they are somehow inferior, but they have the same nutritional value as the more expensive options, the CMA said.

It added households could be saving up to £540 per year by switching.

The regulator also recommended that supermarkets should let people know that all infant formula has the right nutrients for babies, and that information should also be on baby milk labels.

Retailers should also make it easier for parents to compare prices, and the ban on advertising should be extended to include follow-on formula.

But people should be allowed to use points, gift cards and vouchers to get the most for their money, its chief executive told the BBC.