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Baby formula

Baby formula
Baby, or infant, formula is a manufactured food for babies often used as a substitute for breast milk. It is a powder or liquid concentrate that is mixed with water and fed through a bottle. It is widely used in Asia, which represents 53% of the global market share. In Hong Kong, a shortage in availability of baby formula led to restrictions on how much could be taken out of the city and into mainland China.
Organic farmer Yan Fuqin holds a bunch of her farm’s shine muscat grapes at her stall at Hong Kong’s Tsuen Wan Market. Photo: Hei Kiu Au
Food and Drinks

Shine muscat grapes grown in Hong Kong? She’s doing it – using baby formula

Yan Fuqin’s organic farm in Kwu Tung uses Mead Johnson formula to grow soft, creamy shine muscat grapes, but its future is under threat.

Hong Kong healthcare and hospitals

Hong Kong toddler suspected to have fallen ill from tainted milk formula

Hong Kong

Video | Nestlé baby milk formula tests positive for toxin

Hong Kong healthcare and hospitals

Hong Kong recalls Aptamil baby milk formula batch over toxin contamination fears

Centre for Food Safety says a local retailer sold a small quantity of the formula batch suspected to contain cereulide.

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Aptamil Profutura DUO Pre D 800g. Photo: Handout
Hong Kong society

Traces of toxin found in more Nestlé baby milk formula samples in Hong Kong

Some samples from batches recalled earlier tested positive for the toxin cereulide.

Hong Kong society

Hong Kong authorities find toxins in 4 batches of milk powder recalled by Nestlé

Centre for Food Safety says Swiss food giant has recalled 96,000 tins of products due to potential contamination caused by bacteria in ingredients.

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United States

ByHeart baby formula botulism likely linked to contaminated milk powder: FDA

FDA testing found the type of bacteria that could cause the illness in two samples used to make ByHeart’s baby milk powder.

Ashaan Carter lies on his mother at a Portland children’s hospital during his treatment for infant botulism in November 2025 after drinking ByHeart baby formula donated to vulnerable families. Photo: AP
Malaysia

‘Who can we trust?’: Nestle formula recall rattles Malaysian parents

Despite assurances that local stocks are safe, wary parents are scouring ingredient lists and doing their own ‘due diligence’.

Hong Kong society

Nestlé Hong Kong recalls another baby milk formula batch as tests get all clear

Swiss food giant has added a batch of formula with best-before date of June 16, 2027, to its recall list.

Hong Kong healthcare and hospitals

Hong Kong pharmacies pull Nestle baby milk formula amid recall over toxin risk

Membership of a WhatsApp concern group set up by a few mothers balloons to more than 800 people within hours.

Only certain batches of infant formula are affected by Nestle’s recall. Photo: Sam Tsang
Hong Kong healthcare and hospitals

‘Gift of life’: Hong Kong breast milk bank collects over 300 litres

More donations needed to reach aim of collecting 1,000 litres annually to help 450 to 600 premature and critically ill newborns.

Hong Kong Breast Milk Bank Director Dr Rosanna Wong has urged more mothers to become donors. Photo: ISD
Mainland China

All that silver is turning into gold in China’s ageing society

Companies are shifting their focus to capitalise on opportunities presented by China’s ageing population. For some, the strategic pivot is starting to pay off.

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China society

Opinion | China food safety: consumer vigilance can’t make up for weak regulation

The authorities deal with scandals seriously, including the recent one involving cooking oil, but by then, it may be too late. Regulation and monitoring must be stepped up.

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Hong Kong

Editorial | Hong Kong breast milk bank is best for everyone

First city collection facility set for launch next year will help babies facing serious health problems and mothers struggling to supply.

Hong Kong will launch its first breast milk bank by the first quarter of next year. Photo: SCMP Pictures
Indonesia

Are Chinese-made skincare brands downplaying their origins to appeal to Muslims?

Consumers in Indonesia and Malaysia expressed concerns about whether the Chinese-made products meet halal certification standards

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Skintific uses local brand ambassadors like actor Nicholas Saputra in Indonesia. Photo: Aisyah Llewellyn
Australia

Daigou: Australia’s Chinese personal shoppers rebrand to stay relevant

Daigou, or personal shoppers for mainland Chinese consumers, used to account for billions of dollars of products sold by Australian businesses.

China society

Opinion | China wants to raise birth rate, but has missed new mothers’ every need

China has been taking measures to encourage couples to have children, offering incentives ranging from cash to homebuyer subsidies. However, there is not enough information on what to expect and how to raise a child, not much community help and the ‘birth reward’ doesn’t go very far.

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Hong Kong

Opinion | Hong Kong must do much more so working mums can keep breastfeeding

Even in the government-funded Cyberport, there is not a single nursing room. From maternity, paternity and childcare leave, to workplace support, Hong Kong must realise it takes all of society to raise a breastfed child.

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Close to 80 per cent of women in Hong Kong start out breastfeeding but, after a year, less than a quarter still do. Photo: Shutterstock
Coronavirus Hong Kong

Opinion | Don’t let old mainland frictions haunt Hong Kong’s new normal

Unhappiness about painkillers being sent to the mainland amid a local shortage and mainlanders looking for vaccines in Hong Kong risk raising cross-border distrust. The government must defuse these tensions quickly.

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China food safety

Chinese food firm Maiquer under investigation over milk additive

Market regulator says food solvent propylene glycol was found in batches of milk in Zhejiang.

United States

US baby milk formula flight from Europe

A flight from Switzerland will arrive in Indianapolis on Sunday with132 pallets of Nestlé baby formula; the first load is expected to provide as many as 1.5 million bottles.

A first air shipment of baby milk formula will be delivered to the US on Sunday under an emergency programme. Photo: Shutterstock
United States

Dangerous DIY baby milk formula recipes in US go viral

Solutions to the national shortage are being sought on the internet, but medical experts say home-made versions come with serious health risks; Facebook, TikTok and YouTube have been inconsistent in dealing with the issue.

Social media posts containing dangerous misinformation about home-made formula recipes have gone viral online as the United States faces a shortage. Photo: Zuma
Ukraine

Biden signs US$40 billion bill for Ukraine assistance during Asia trip

The funding is intended to support Ukraine through September, and it dwarfs an earlier emergency measure that provided US$13.6 billion in assistance.

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Joe Biden

America’s baby formula shortage is a new headache for the White House

The White House raced to show it’s trying to ease a national baby milk formula shortage that has left frantic parents scouring store shelves to feed their children.

China economy

Got milk? China’s health-conscious consumers push imports to ‘major milestones’

The average consumer in China drank five times as much milk last year than in 2012, as liquid milk sales from New Zealand, the European Union and Australia boomed last year.

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China’s strong demand for overseas-made infant formula started in 2008 after the so-called melamine scandal, when 300,000 children were poisoned after drinking contaminated products. Photo: Bloomberg
China society

Steroid cream used to treat baby’s eczema gives her hairy cheeks

Parents in China who used a cream for their baby’s eczema were horrified to see her develop a protruding, hairy forehead and cheeks and her weight shoot up. A test showed the cream contained a powerful steroid.

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A steroid cream has been pulled from shelves in China after it caused a baby to develop a protruding, hairy forehead and cheeks and her weight to balloon.
China food safety

Chinese start-up builds trust in organic foods with blockchain

OrgHive is helping companies market their organic food products to Chinese consumers by building their trust in these brands.

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Mergers & Acquisitions

China’s baby milk giant offers US$400 million to take over supplier

China Feihe has bought fresh milk from YuanShengTai to produce its baby milk formula products since 2010, and now is offering to buy all shares of the farming company.

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