The National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has warned that it will prosecute and ensure that violators of International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes (BMS) in the country were jailed for a period of two years.
It added that such companies or individuals will also be made to forfeit the offending items on conviction no matter the quantity and cost.
The assertion was made by the Bauchi State Coordinator of NAFDAC, Mrs Josephine Dayilim, at a one-day orientation for Media practitioners and social media Influencers on Maternal, Infant and Young Children Nutrition (MICYN) organized by an international development partner, Alive & Thrive fhi360 in conjunction with the Bauchi State Primary Healthcare Development Agency (BASPHCDA) held at Hazibal Suites, Yelwa Road, Bauchi over the weekend.
She therefore urged Journalists to always report the continued violation of BMS by vendors and manufacturers across the country particularly in Bauchi where the programme was held.
Josephine Daliyim also said that the Agency needs the support of Journalists in Bauchi State to be able to effectively monitor and report violators of national regulations by manufacturers of BMS products Code.
She added that the implementation of the Code was designed to protect, promote and support breastfeeding and prevent health caregivers from aggressive marketing of breast milk substitutes by infant food manufacturers.
The Coordinator further noted that lack of awareness of stakeholders, including the media, had also contributed to the gravity of violations currently being practiced
She then appealed to Journalists and social media platforms operators to report such cases of violators and as well create awareness on the code of Marketing of Breast Milk Substitute,
According to her, the aim of the code is to contribute to the provision of safe and adequate nutrition for infants, by the protection and promotion of breastfeeding, and by ensuring the proper use of breastmilk substitutes.
She added that when these are necessary, on the basis of adequate information and through appropriate marketing and distribution.
The scope of the Code applies to the marketing, and practices related thereto, of the following products: breastmilk substitutes, including infant formula; other milk products, foods and beverages.
It also includes bottle-fed complementary foods, when marketed or otherwise represented to be suitable, with or without modification, for use as a partial or total replacement of breastmilk; feeding bottles and teats. It also applies to their quality and availability, and to information concerning their use
On information and education, NAFDAC advocated that Governments should have the responsibility to ensure that objective and consistent information is provided on infant and young child feeding for use by families and those involved in the field of infant and young child nutrition.
This responsibility should cover either the planning, provision, design and dissemination of information, or their control.
Also, Informational and educational materials, whether written, audio, or visual, dealing with the feeding of infants and intended to reach pregnant women and mothers of infants and young children, should include clear information on all the following points:
The benefits and superiority of breastfeeding; maternal nutrition, and the preparation for and maintenance of breastfeeding; the negative effect on breastfeeding of introducing partial bottle feeding; the difficulty of reversing the decision not to breastfeed; and, where needed, the proper use of infant formula, whether manufactured industrially or home-prepared.
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