Are You Boycotting Nestle?

July 2-8 is “International Nestlé-Free Week,” according to Baby Milk Action. The campaign is intended to draw attention and criticism to Nestle, a producer of baby formula, for “contribut[ing] to the unnecessary death and suffering of infants around the world by aggressively marketing baby foods in breach of international marketing standards.” Although the campaign has been going on since 1977, I haven’t been following this closely, but BMA has additional resources describing the alleged violations, answers to frequently asked questions, and other materials. A blog related to the boycott campaign is also available.

This Guardian [UK] article frames the issue as:

[M]others in developing countries – the most vulnerable of mothers anywhere, the ones least able to afford formula milk, the ones whose babies most need the breast milk they could and should be getting for free – were being, and continue to be, targeted by corporate giants bent on carving out their share of a valuable market…

The piece also describes the author’s visit to Bangladesh to observe whether marketing standards were being observed, and the history of the boycott.

I’m interested in whether any of you have been keeping up on this and what you think.

View a complete list of Nestle brands. There is a Wikipedia entry on the boycott that provides additional historical details and links to more information.